


Awakening

by Zeelian



Series: The Eternal Universe - Birth of a Dragon [12]
Category: Fantasy - Fandom, Original Work, Science Fiction - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Mythology, Alternate Universe - Demons, Alternate Universe - Magic, Chronoshift, Cultural Differences, Cultural Female Slavery, Demon Languages, Demon Realm, Demonic Culture, Demonic Reproduction, Extreme Patriachy, Fae Magic, Multi, Non-Binary Species, Sexual Initiation Rites
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-04-24 15:08:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 50,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19175845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zeelian/pseuds/Zeelian
Summary: After spending a year in the demon realm it was finally time to meet Emelie's father, and prepare to be brought before Lilith to be accepted as a Lilim, and with it gain her true power.Takeshi's looming heat sets things on edge though and living in the Obsidian Palace has it's own pitfalls, especially with the Lord having a few ideas of his own.





	1. A Father's Plight

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: These chapters contains mentions of culturally enforced female slavery, sexual slavery, forced prostitution and general abuse toward women and girls.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“ _Take, I'm not ready for this!”_  
The familiar managed to transfer the hint of panic in Emelie's tone, though, Takeshi could tell that from the way her tail was staunching the blood-flow to his hand.  
 _“Easy sweetie, before you take my hand off.”  
“Oops, sorry.”_  
The tail slowly uncurled a bit and released the vice-like grip.  
 _“Don't worry so much. We won't allow anything bad to happen.”  
“But what if he really did abandon us, not because he had to, but because he wanted to?”  
“Then we kick his ass and make him regret it.”  
“I guess..”_

It was still early evening and they were seated in one of the gardens, waiting for Emelie's father to arrive.  
Lucifer had informed them about an hour ago that Maroue had arrived at the city gates and had invited them to one of the private gardens to meet the Arai Lilim that had fathered Emelie.  
He was taking his sweet time arriving though, and it set Emelie's nerves on edge which in turn set Takeshi and Knight on edge, both of them always well attuned to her emotions, even Hugin and Munin were showing signs of agitation, showing that they had adapted well to life in a pack.

When Maroue finally arrived Emelie's tail tightened to a painful grip and Takeshi slowly flexed his hand to try to keep at least some blood flowing to it.  
When Maroue quickly walked over to them to greet Emelie, Takeshi could feel Maria's spirit stir, asking him for power, and the use of his physical body which he instantly allowed her.  
A sharp sound, like a whip, echoed across the garden as Maroue was sent flying by a vicious slap, courtesy of Maria's spirit and Takeshi's body.  
For a brief moment Emelie stared at Takeshi before noticing the presence of her mother's spirit.  
“Way to go Mom!”  
“Damn it Maria, that hurt my hand. You still haven't learned how to slap properly.”  
Takeshi complained while trying to shake the sting from his hand.  
The angry look on Maroue's face instantly drained when he heard the conversation, and noticed the ghostly image that hovered just above Takeshi's shoulders.

“Maria?”  
“Indeed, Maria.”  
Lucifer was the one to confirm the identity of the spirit.  
“Oh, crap...”  
“You don't say?”  
Maria spoke through Takeshi, folding his arms over his chest she leveled a wilting glare on the floored demon.  
“You said you were going to pick up some groceries so you could make a nice dinner, but instead of you returning, I get room-service and a note telling me you have left the country early...”  
Takeshi was struggling to not become overwhelmed by Maria's emotions, with betrayal at the top.  
“For what it's worth, I am sorry. I did intend to return and cook that meal, spend the night and say my farewells in the morning. But while I was away the gateway I used to travel to the human realm began closing.”  
“You could have stayed.”  
Even if the voice that spoke was Takeshi's they could all feel Maria's raw emotions through the words and Maroue flinched slightly at the pain they carried.

“If I had stayed you would not have been picked up by the GCTI, and without your presence, Takeshi would have died with the others in Alaska. GCTI would never have been taken down.”  
Maroue's voice was growing increasingly emotional as he spoke.  
“Our daughter would not have survived her awakening. The girls they saved would all be dead. And in the end, the human realm would fall without hope, shattering the balance and bringing the other realms with it. Like this, there is a chance, a hope, that the human realm can be saved, and the balance restored.”  
He took a deep breath and rose to his feet before speaking again.  
“I had to choose, stay, save you and spend a few years with my daughter, but ultimately lose her, and all hope for the future. Or leave and lose you, miss my daughter growing up, but gain hope for a future for all realms.”  
There was a slightly wary glint in his eyes as he stepped closer to the upset spirit, and the body it possessed.  
“Despite your youth, I did very much enjoy our talks. And I hope that your Alpha here will allow us the opportunity to speak more.”  
Before Takeshi could answer he found his body kissing the demon and it took a few moments to wrestle control back from Maria.

“Oi, my body! Remember? I'm allowing you to borrow it so that you can speak for yourself, that does **not** mean you can just go around kissing guys with it.”  
Takeshi voiced his complaints once he had control back, and he could already hear the others snickering.  
“Oh shush, it's not like it's the first time you ever kissed a good looking guy.”  
Maria instantly shot him down, much to the others growing amusement.  
“Yeah, but I knew those guys, chose those guys! And none were my potential father-in-law...”  
“Oh, but your potential mother-in-law was fine?”  
She returned in a teasing quip.  
“Come on, I didn't even know you had a kid back then.”  
By then everyone was laughing, everyone but Emelie who was somewhat stunned by his words, she knew he loved her, but he had never before mentioned any desire to marry her, or mate her.  
 _“I don't think he is aware he said it. So how about we pretend he didn't reveal himself?”_  
Knight's silent words snapped her mind back to the events before them and she joined the laughing at their antics.

“Would it be safe for me to greet my daughter now?”  
Maroue waited for the laughing to abate slightly before speaking up.  
“Oh, I don't know, she has her mother's temper after all.”  
This time Takeshi was able to lock down his power before Maria could use it to shock him in retaliation for the quip about her temper, much to the spirit's annoyance.  
Their little display came with a nice bonus though, Emelie had completely forgotten about being nervous about meeting her father.  
Maroue gave Emelie a long, tight hug, but when he let go and took a small step back to look at her, and properly feel her aura she sent him flying in much the same manner that her mother had.  
She wasn't about to just forgive and forget, and accept him as her father, that easily, he would have to earn it.  
“Blood alone does not make a father, you may have sired me, but for now you are my father in name only.”  
There was no surprise at her statement, but Takeshi instantly became on edge when Maroue's aura shifted and became aggressively dominant, but before he could step between them he was stopped by Lucifer's hand on his shoulder.

“Don't interfere. She is rejecting his right of dominance, and since she is still considered a child here, his instincts demand that she submit.”  
“So, teen rebellion, and dad telling her _You're still a kid and will do what I tell you_ , demon style?”  
“Pretty much. Don't worry, he will be careful.”  
“I'm actually more worried that she will hurt him while under the influence of her instincts, she would be rather distraught afterward if she did.”  
As expected Emelie refused to submit to the aura of her father and the battle of wills turned physical, and everyone watched as they both tried to make the other submit.  
But the outcome was somewhat unexpected as Emelie managed to twist around and throw her father to the ground and pin him with the blade of her scythe against the throat, causing him to submit.  
“I had a feeling I would end up submitting sooner or later, but I never imagined it would happen before the presentation.”  
Maroue grumbled as he got up and with a short nod he stepped back to allow the others to tend to her, neither had suffered any real damage though, other than Maroue's pride suffering a blow.  
According to demon law he no longer had any authority over her, even if she still was considered a minor until her presentation.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“ _So, what do you think of him?”  
_ Lucifer stepped up behind Maroue as he watched Takeshi carefully align a small tear in the membrane of Emelie's left wing before gently dragging his tongue along it to speed up her healing.  
It would have been easy for her to heal it herself, but Takeshi and Knight both insisted that she allow them to help her, to make sure she didn't drain any more of her energy.  
 _“He tastes like power. Power and passion.”_  
Maroue touched his lips with a crooked smile, remembering the taste from the kiss Maria's spirit had given him using Takeshi's body.  
 _“A perfect match for a succubus like my daughter. Her strength proves as much.”  
_ There was no mistaking the pride in Maroue's tone, as humiliating as it had been to submit to his youngest daughter, it was proof of her strength. _  
“We knew he would be if they managed to survive. So far the visions given by the Fates have been accurate.”  
_ Both Lucifer and Roghan had begun receiving visions about a hundred human years ago, warning them about the imbalance of the human realm, but also offering glimpses of hope, glimpses of what could one day restore the balance. _  
“I will teach her what she needs to know and bring her before mother for her presentation at the opening of the eclipse festival.”  
“And see her mated by the end of it.”  
_Lucifer added, half teasing, half sympathetic and as expected Maroue had quite a few objections to the idea of his daughter being mated so soon after her presentation, normally a courting would last for several years. _  
“I am sure he would court her good and proper if they didn't have the pressure of his heat looming over them.”  
“What? He is capable of going into heat?”  
_Maroue's surprise was evident in his tone. _  
“Yes, and he is actively suppressing it now so that he can spend it with her.”  
_ Lucifer knew that Takeshi wished to keep his condition private, but Maroue needed to know. _  
“There is no way those two would be able to spend their heat together and not end up mated.”  
_ Maroue knew that it was their destiny to end up mated, the Fates had made that unusually clear in the visions, but that didn't mean he liked the idea of such a short courting.

As they watched the scene in front of them shifted, from Takeshi and Knight tending to Emelie's wounds, into teasing and a small scuffle.  
“Logan...”  
The drawn out note and singsong quality of Takeshi's voice gave ample warning that something was going on.  
“Yes Alpha?”  
Knight replied in kin with a teasing undertone.  
“Run..!”  
Takeshi didn't raise his voice, but Knight instantly took of with a grin and a few seconds later Takeshi sauntered after him, confident he could easily catch his beta if he really wanted to.  
Emelie just shook her head and turned her attention back to her father and Lucifer.  
“You are not going to join them?”  
Maroue questioned when she showed no sign of joining the chase.  
“As much as I would like to, it would defeat the purpose of their little chase.”  
“Still struggling to suppress that heat, is he?”  
Emelie gave Lucifer a sharp glare for voicing such a private matter openly, but she did understand why he did it.  
“Yes, Ylian has been successfully helping him stay calm while suppressing it, but yi had some things yi had to do and left the city two days ago, and according to yi's estimate yi won't be back for another three days.”  
“Ylian?”  
Maroue was curious who this Ylian was, especially if they allowed them to help with something so intimate.

“Yi is a shadeling that we got to know while training with the hunters.”  
“Oh, you are training to become a huntress?”  
“I **am** a huntress! We _all_ passed our trial.”  
 _“Damn, you need to tell me these things...”_  
Maroue glanced at Lucifer with a hint of annoyance.  
“Don't you look at him! Your lack of knowledge is all on your head.”  
She hadn't been able to pick up on the silent conversation, but she could guess what it was about, and the somewhat guilty look on Maroue's face confirmed it.  
The way she felt about all of it bothered her a bit, she was somewhat surprised about her own refusal to even think of him as her father until he had proven himself, but at the same time she felt confident in trusting her instincts.  
“So then why are you not joining them?”  
“A bit of a mock chase will help him settle his instincts, but if I joined them there is a risk it would turn into a real mating chase.”  
Maroue just nodded his understanding before asking her to join him at one of the small tables so that they could talk and she did as he asked, but not without a measure of hesitance and lingering anger as her demon instincts rebelled against Maroue's lack of knowledge about her.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Munin, could you take me to the palace library?”  
Emelie's voice was quiet, and slightly hesitant.  
“Of curse. Lucifer has ordered that you be permitted to move as you wish within the palace, including areas that are usually not permitted, such as his personal library.”  
It had taken a bit of work, but the twins had finally stopped using titles in private conversations.  
“I need to learn all of this, the laws, the bloodlines, everything that Maroue is trying to teach me, but he's driving me insane.”  
Munin just nodded softly and extracted himself from the pile of bodies in the bedding.  
“Then we should start with the palace library, they have all the information on the laws. Lucifer's library should have better books on the bloodlines.”  
“Okay. Take, I'm taking Munin to the library, I'll be back before breakfast.”  
“Okay sweetie, just please, don't overdo it.”  
“I won't. It's not the first time I have done a serious cramming session, only now I have the benefit of a demon constitution.”  
“Don't worry Take, I'll make sure our sweet little Em takes it easy.”  
“Oh shush you old hens. I can take care of myself.”  
She huffed and stalked out the door.  
“Em, the library is the other way.”  
Munin's teasing quip about her turning the wrong way earned him an annoyed shriek as she pounced and nipped at his ear and the others laughed and told them to get out so they could go back to napping.

“Why can't he just be my father?”  
As the study session went on Emelie's mood had turned increasingly morose so Munin wasn't all that surprised when she suddenly dropped the book and threw herself into his arms.  
“I don't know _ama_. I don't know.”  
He carefully wrapped his arms around her, then added his wings as well, cocooning her softly against his body.  
“He treats me like a child, but not like a daughter, am I not worthy to be his daughter?”  
Her soft sobs tore at Munin's instincts, he may not have pack instincts like the others, but over the time he had known Emelie he had grown to love her deeply, he wasn't entirely sure how to describe it though, only that it was love, deep and strong, and now it made him want to protect her.  
“Of course you are ama, you are perfect. Don't cry over his shortcomings, his foolishness.”  
Slowly the crying subsided and he could feel her turn slightly in his arms.  
“You've never called me ama before...”  
 _Ama_ was the female version of the Urui word _Ami_ , which was a term of endearment similar to sweetie, or love, that could be used platonically as well as familially or romantically.  
“I guess I haven't. But I do love you deeply.”  
Leaning in he claimed her lips in a soft kiss, which despite his words, and her nature, remained almost chaste.  
“But you're not **in** love with me.”  
She smiled against his lips, accepting his feelings for what they were.  
“No, ama I'm not.”  
As he spoke he sensed that her mood was back to a more normal state so he unfurled his wings and handed her the bound tome with a smile.

“Munin, am I reading this right. Does my rejection of Maroue mean I have no house? No name?”  
“You rejected his house along with him, yes. But as a lilim you are still a daughter of the House of the Eternal Night, the house of Lilith. Not to mention you are Pack Kiryu, a bond just as important as that of a house.”  
“Oh, I see. All this stuff about houses can be confusing...”  
“Mhm, but don't worry, you'll figure it out.”  
A demon house was belonging, history, bloodlines and achievements, to earn a house of your own was an accomplishment.  
“Besides, I'm pretty sure Lilith is aware of this development, and that she will present you with a house of your own once you have formally gained your _ramhiri_.”  
Ramhiri was the rights, and obligations, of an adult, normally a demon would receive them upon reaching the age of majority for their kind, though some were required to go through various trials to prove themselves.  
In Emelie's case she would normally have been considered an adult at her age, but due to the fact that she had not yet been presented to Lilith to have her power unsealed she was still considered a minor.  
“If she accepts me...”  
“What have we said about those doubts?”  
“Oh shush...”  
Emelie grumbled and complained, but she settled down as Munin began kneading her shoulders.  
“Did Take teach you that?”  
“Mhm, he told me it could help you relax when you get like this.”  
“Thanks for taking the time to learn.”  
“It's my pleasure ama.”  
The way she leaned back into him stirred all kinds of instincts, and Munin found himself enjoying it immensely.

“May I touch your mashen?”  
It's was a somewhat forward question, but Emelie just smiled without looking up from the book.  
“Yes.”  
She tried to keep reading, but the feeling of Munin's fingers gently massaging the sensitive base of her wings was very distracting.  
“You know, I don't think I'll be able to pay much attention to the books anymore tonight. How about you show me some of the gardens instead? I'm sure this place has lots of hidden ones.”  
“There are, many which can only be found from the air.”  
Together they set the books back where they belonged before Munin showed her one of his favorite hidden gardens.

“Ah, there's my little co-alpha. Feeling better?”  
When Emelie and Munin returned they were greeted by a smiling Takeshi.  
“Yeah, I do.”  
She knew that Takeshi and Knight had felt her little breakdown in the library, and that at least Takeshi had felt exactly how Munin helped her through it.  
“Thanks for looking after her Munin.”  
“It was my pleasure, alpha.”  
The slightly teasing hint in Munin's voice instantly earned him some teasing quips, and a frustrated hiss from Emelie.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“No! I am going hunting with the others and that is final. If you want to keep up the lessons you will have to join us and go hunting.”  
Emelie and Maroue had been arguing most of the morning, he wanted her to stay and study demon law and traditions, especially those pertaining to the Lilim and her introduction, while she was set on joining the boys for a short hunting trip.  
“Or are you too much of a scholar to be a hunter?”  
Her words stung but they showed that she had learned quite a bit about demon law, she was accusing him of being a coward, of being less than a man, but she did so in carefully chosen words, words that were not enough to warrant a challenge.  
“It is quite a challenge for a flightless to become a hunter.”  
“Last time I looked neither Take, not Logan are fliers and they became hunters just fine. So enough excuses.”  
The flare of her wings and aura was a clear dismissal.  
“Maybe a break from the studies would do you both some good, you have done nothing but bicker and argue since your return.”  
Lucifer was growing rather frustrated with the constant bad mood of his right hand, and oldest friend.  
Maroue had been with him since shortly after his banishment and over the centuries he had grown to consider the scholar a very good friend, but sometimes he was too stubborn for his own good, a trait his daughter had obviously inherited.  
“She needs to learn this before her presentation!”

The aggravated tone finally made Lucifer snap and he grabbed Maroue by the neck and pulled him aside for a stern talking to, once they had left the garden he pushed Maroue against the wall and pinned him with a flare of aura that demanded obedience.  
“What she needs is a chance to get to know her father. What good will it do her to know all the laws, all the bloodlines, if she can't connect to her own blood, her own father?”  
“They will question her right to ascend.”  
Maroue tried to argue, but Lucifer was not having any of it.  
“And she will force them to submit if they try. I know you are no fighter, but you felt her power, as have I. She is strong, even without her full power she is stronger than any Shirai I have ever met. They have trained her, and fed her, exceptionally well.”  
“She still needs to learn, this is important. And she does not seem to care.”  
“Are you truly so blind old friend?”  
There was a weary disappointment in Lucifer's voice that made Maroue pause his rant.

“What do you mean?”  
“Every night when they retire to the guest-wing she spends a mark, maybe two with her pack before taking Munin and heading to the library where she has him help her study. And she has been doing that since they first came to the palace. She probably already knows most of what you are trying to teach her.”  
“Then why has she not said that she already knows it?”  
“Have you bothered asking how much she knows? Or have you just assumed that she knows nothing of demon ways?”  
Maroue's silence was answer enough.  
“As I thought.”  
Lucifer turned his back on Maroue with a deep sigh.  
“When it's time for her presentation, I will ask her who she wants by her side. Roghan would be more than willing, and there will be several others at the feast. And it is within my right to stand at her side as well, which I would be honored to do should she want me to.”  
He began to walk away and at the doorway to the garden he paused for a moment.  
“I will not let her stand before Lady Lilith and the council of elders with someone she does not trust at her side.”  
With those words Lucifer walked away to go fetch his own hunters garb, the small pack's joyful anticipation of the hunt was contagious.

“Take, are you and Logan going to borrow those peregrine mounts again?”  
Emelie was checking her bag to make sure everything she would need was properly packed.  
“Nah, Kiryu-sama has agreed to carry me and we managed to talk Ylian into carrying Logan.”  
“Oh, any idea what form yi will be using?”  
Emelie was curious about the shadeling's ability to transform, it was very different from Takeshi's shifting and there was a chance that she might be able to learn a bit of it after her presentation.  
“None, why don't you go ask yi?”  
She quickly secured the bag, a kind of reverse backpack that was designed not to interfere with the wings of a demon and headed toward the courtyard.  
When she entered the courtyard she noticed that Maroue was there along with a mount she had not seen before so she guessed that the giant winged lion was his personal mount, she gave the mount another quick glance before expanding her aura to pinpoint the cold, calm darkness that she recognized as Ylian.”  
“Ah, there you are. I heard you would be acting the part of mount for Logan this time?”  
“Indeed, it's a fairly short trip, but we do need to fly so that stallion from the plains won't do him much good, despite its abilities.”  
“So, come on, what form are you going to use?”  
She was practically bouncing and Ylian just shook their head with a smile.  
“That's a surprise.”  
“Meanie!”  
She punched Ylian's arm with a mock glare.

When Takeshi and Knight exited the guest wing Emelie noticed that Lucifer had joined them, wearing the simple hunter's garb it was obvious that he intended to hunt as well.  
Looking back toward Maroue she noted that he was wearing his usual robes that looked like a cross between a fancy clergy habit and a wizard's robe, like something you might find yourself wearing in one of the many fantasy role-playing games that the girls were so fond of.  
Every part of her that was demon resented him, not only for abandoning her and her mother, but for the way he was constantly underestimating her, and she found herself agreeing with it, that he either was not a hunter, or refused to wear the hunter's garb did not improve her impression of him.  
“Kiryu-sama, it's nice to see you again”  
She greeted the small dragon when she appeared from within Takeshi's soul.  
“It is good to be seen Emelie-chan.”  
Emelie glared at the dragon for calling her _chan_ but after a few moments she broke down into laughter just as Takeshi lost his composure at the uncharacteristically childish honorific.  
While they were laughing the dragon grew in size until she could comfortably carry both Takeshi and their bags.

“Come on Ylian, show us what you got!”  
Emelie took a few steps back when Ylian's form diffused into a cloud that rapidly grew and then solidified into a large winged beast that was very familiar.  
“Oh, a proper western dragon. I like it!”  
The form Ylian had chosen was compact and fairly heavy built with strong legs and a powerful neck and tail, the wings were massive and the entire spine was spiked, and the head sported several sets of horns.  
A surprised yelp from Takeshi made her look behind her in time to see Kiryu shift and change, her body becoming more compact and the short legs grew longer and wings began to sprout, before long she had assumed the form of a western dragon as well, though she was far more slender built, more feminine.  
Her head hadn't changed much though and she had black wisps of smoke and fire along her spine instead of spikes.  
“Wow, I didn't know you could do that.”  
Emelie looked at her with a somewhat slack-jawed expression.  
“Of course I can, I **am** half shadow after all.”  
“Which one is your true form?”  
“My mother was what you call a western dragon, my father a shadow. So this is closer to my true form, though I have used the other form for so long I have gotten used to it.”  
“Well, you're just as pretty in either form. Right Take?”  
“As long as it doesn't mean that I have to get a new tattoo I couldn't care less. Her spirit remains the same.”  
The old dragon just chuckled at his complaint about not wanting to go through the process of the marking again before turning to Emelie.  
“You prefer this form, right?”  
“I kinda do, it's the kind of dragon I grew up with.”  
“Then for you, our little Lilim, I will use this form.”  
Emelie blushed and huffed in annoyance, which made the others laugh and tease her a bit.

After a few more minutes making sure they had everything Lucifer approached them.  
“Are we ready to head out?”  
“We are.”  
“Let's head out then.”  
Several of the guards had to brace themselves from the strong burst of wind as the group took off.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Are we hunting anything in particular?”  
It became rather obvious that Lucifer had joined them on a whim and was now trying to sate his curiosity and figure out what he had gotten himself into.  
“Well, I need some new clothes for my presentation. So the target is some nice materials. Some baby gong for the leather, and I want a few young kanna for their spikes, they should make great decorations.”  
“I know where you can find silver kanna, I can take you there if you promise not to let anyone know where you found them.”  
“Oh that would be perfect! And if we are careful we can get the spikes without hurting them, if they are rare I mean."  
"They are, and it would be much appreciated if we can take what you need without killing. Anything else?"  
"Well, I was thinking of catching a few of those fluffy rabbit things, their fur is supposed to make the strongest thread. A few silver and a few purple. And a few of those black snakes with the kinda oil slick effect on their scales.”  
“So _Damra_ and _Vocri_ as well as baby gong and kanna. That should make for a very interesting hunt.”

None of the desired prey were considered to be easy targets, especially the young gong and kanna were well guarded by groups of the dangerous adults.  
“Do you know of a nicely sized bird with deep black, shiny, feathers that we could catch? Ideally ones that we can pluck a handful of the right size feathers and then release.”  
“You are welcome to steal some more of my feathers if that is acceptable.”  
“And what price would you ask for that?”  
The suspicious look she gave him earned her a smile radiating mock innocence.  
“All I ask is that you do not dismiss my invitations without actually considering them.”  
She nailed him with a glare, but she took the time to consider his price.  
 _“You have my word I will do nothing until after you have had a chance to court and mate that crazy alpha of yours.”_  
He added for her alone.  
“Hmph, I guess that would be acceptable.”  
Her response caused a bout of good natured teasing, though, it might have been caused by the slight blush rather than the answer itself.

They kept flying all day, not even stopping for food and by sunset they had reached the mountain-range that separated the lowlands surrounding the Obsidian Halls from the highland forest, and the great plains of the plateau where the gong and kanna lived, both the rabbit like damra and the vocri snakes lived in the forest.  
Finding a cave large enough to comfortably house them took a while, but they managed to find one, and between Maroue's lion blocking the entrance and Kiryu returning to the serpentine form of the eastern dragon and curling herself along the wall they were warm and cozy without the need of fire, a cluster of crystals charged with glowing energy giving them what little light they needed.

“Did the hunters teach you how to play _Mallakuu_?”  
Emelie breathed a sigh of relief when Lucifer interrupted Maroue's somewhat ranting lecture about what clothing would be appropriate for someone of her station and bloodline, insisting that she should be wearing scholar robes similar to the ones he wore.  
Continuing about how this hunt was a waste of time as he had already taken the liberty of obtaining suitable robes for her and that they should focus on her lessons instead he was doing a very good job at pissing her off.  
By the time Lucifer spoke up her instincts were telling her to attack Maroue and force him to submit again and she had a feeling that Lucifer was aware of that and was intervening.  
“That's the dice and stick game you taught us back on the island, isn't it Logan?”  
“It is.”  
Knight confirmed with a slight nod over the rim of the small cup of orcha.  
“Take, do you still have the game set I made?”  
“Of course.”  
He reached inside the bag, and with a slight shift he brought the simple crystal box out from the shift, the bag was just a ruse though, a habit he had forced himself into.  
“Here.”

He handed her the box and she quickly opened it and placed the lid on the floor in front of her and with a push of power she changed the crystal into a simple low table with raised edges before removing the folded piece of thin leather and placing it on the table to protect the surface and keep the noise down.  
A stack of small coasters were removed from the box and she placed one in front of each player, they would act as a solid surface for spinning the multi-sided crystal rods that were used as dice for the game.  
They were each given a small box with different dice, two each of 10, 8 and 6 sided rods as well as a stack of simple sticks that looked like the ones used for pick-up sticks.  
The clear sticks with black stripes were for making bets, and keeping score and a larger box of sticks with reverse coloring was placed in the middle to act as a bank of sorts.  
They spent most of the night relaxing and playing, making various bets, some fairly normal, and others rather outrageous.

When the sun began to rise they put away the game and Emelie turned to Takeshi and crawled into his lap to sate her hunger a bit.  
The others withdrew their auras and focused on their conversation to give them a semblance of privacy, but pretty soon Knight felt a slight tug on the bond signaling that Takeshi was reaching the limit of his control.  
“Ssh, come here Em. Easy. Focus on me. Take needs to calm down.”  
Knight unfurled his aura and pushed it at her gently, mixed with teasing kisses he managed to get her to shift her focus to him, and feed of his aura instead.  
As soon as her focus had shifted Ylian went to Takeshi and began helping him soothe the raging instincts, all while Hugin and Munin watched, ready to help in any way they could, including adding their energy to Knight's for Emelie to feed from.  
“You guys are getting pretty good at this.”  
Lucifer commented while reaching out with his own aura, offering Emelie to draw from him as well if she wanted to.  
“But I think we all agree that it will be a relief to get the introduction, and the heat, over with.”  
He had to fight the urge to sigh when he looked over at Maroue only to see him burrowed into his books, obviously sulking, at the rate things were going he was sure that Emelie would not chose her father to bring her before Lilith.

As much as he wanted to feel sorry for his old friend he just couldn't bring himself to it, he had warned him several times, told him to stop treating her like a student and start treating her like a daughter, but the stubborn old fool refused to listen, refused to change his ways and it was costing him his daughter.  
And what a daughter she was, beautiful, strong, clever and with a heart as pure and true as they came, so utterly demon, and yet so completely human, he found a part of himself wishing she was his daughter, and another part wanting to court her, knowing that given time he would grow to love her.  
With an internal sigh he looked away from Maroue and focused on the group curled up against the side of the dragon, and after a moment's consideration he reached out and brushed his aura against them, asking permission to join them and after another couple of moments the auras shifted slightly and became inviting.  
He quickly found himself a comfortable spot at the outside of the group and turning to his side he faced them before reaching out his free wing to cover them all.  
There was a slight muttered objection from Emelie as her position caused a stray feather to tickle her face but she just shifted slightly before falling asleep.  
They didn't sleep for very long though, just two marks later they began getting ready to head out.

“Look, the pillars!”  
Emelie's happy call made everyone draw a slight sigh of relief, the midday sun was unusually hot and they were all hot and uncomfortable despite the slight chill of the wind as they flew:  
Once they landed at the pillars they quickly made camp before drawing up plans for how to hunt their prey.  
“Are damra or vocri any good to eat?”  
Emelie started asking Lucifer all kinds of questions about their prey.  
“Not as good as gong, but they make a nice meal.”  
“Do you think we could get what we need without killing them?”  
“A damra can be sheared without hurting them, but getting the scales off a vocri would be very painful, and leave them defenseless.”  
“So it's better to kill the vocri then.”  
“Indeed. But don't worry, they come out excellent if you cook them in hot oil.”  
Lucifer took an odd pride in her obvious care for her prey and distaste for wasting any part of the life taken, she wasn't his, and yet he felt the same pride that he did in his own daughters when they showed great maturity, care, or power.

“How about we start by scouting the area to see how much traveling we will have to do to collect what we need?”  
Lucifer stepped up and assumed the role of hunt leader, and the others accepted it without objection, deferring to his expertise and vast experience.  
“We should do a few quick hunts to stock up on meat, and gather some fruits, vegetables and other stuff to go with the meat as well.”  
Everyone nodded to Emelie's addition, they could all live on a diet consisting of meat only, but they all preferred the variation and flavor given by adding things like fruits, vegetables and herbs, mushrooms was also a popular addition.  
  
After scouting a suitable gong den Lucifer quickly divided them into three teams, not bothering to involve Maroue which strengthened Emelie's suspicion that the reason he didn't wear a hunters garb was that he had never earned the right to do so.  
“Take, Logan, take Lady Kiryu and the steed and try to drag the adults as far from the den as you can, you are better suited for fighting on the ground. I will keep guard together with Munin and Hugin while Ylian will join Em and enter the den, they can both shadow-travel so they are the safest choice to enter the den.”  
“Got it.”  
Knight quickly let out the haunting whistle that summoned his steed while Takeshi turned to Ylian.  
 _“Keep her safe.”  
“Of course.”  
_Takeshi's silent request was met with a calming promise from Ylian.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Much to Maroue's dismay they spent a full three weeks hunting and gathering materials for the clothes that Emelie wanted to make as well as stockpiling food and materials for trade, and as the hunting helped Takeshi's control they made no effort to hurry it along.  
Lucifer was slightly concerned though as Emelie had grown increasingly cold toward her father and where she had previously ignored his lectures and complaints she would now hiss and flare her wings at him, even going as far as attacking him on several occasions when he kept lecturing instead of backing down.  
The increasing pressure of the rapidly approaching eclipse didn't help, the eclipse only occurred once every 500 years, human realm time, so every 5000 years local time, and it was a huge event.

They would be traveling to the Silver Lakes in the lowlands not far from the red plains where Knight's steed had been born, a trip that would take almost two weeks as they would be traveling in a big caravan.  
Lucifer had gifted both Takeshi and Emelie with mounts from the royal stable, a pair of Qilin, a mix between a dragon and a horse, with the spiral horns of a kudu and tufts of hair along the backside of their legs, and a long tail similar to a lion, but scaled and much larger, and longer, tuft of hair at the end.  
They had spent a few hours every day getting used to riding the high spirited creatures, according to the stable-master there was no creature faster than the Qilin, neither on land, or in the air, a statement that even Kiryu agreed with, though not without a bit of grumbling.  
The Qilin were excellent fliers despite not having wings, they would simply run through the air the same way the did on land.  
Lucifer had also gifted them with a pair of pack beasts, part horse, part large cat.  
For the most part they looked like a large horse, but with a mouth full of fangs and soft paws with sharp claws, they would be carrying their personal bags, while larger items such as the marquee tent and large piles of furs and pillows where they would sleep would be carried by the massive caravan beasts.

So far they had seen two distinct breeds of behemoths;

 _The walking mountain_ , a giant tortoise like creature with a roughly 200 meter long, domed shell carried on six powerful legs.  
The shell, overgrown with trees and plants made it looks every bit like a small mountain while resting, the shell was hollow and divided into cells, like a beehive, and while breeding the offspring would grow within the cells of both male and female beasts.

The second kind had one of those impossible to pronounce, or accurately translate, names so Emelie had taken to calling it a _Desert-tank_.  
It was an armadillo lizard with four pairs of legs and two well defined ridges with spikes along its back that made it easy to secure large amounts of items on it's back, despite _only_ measuring about 100 meters without the tail they could carry larger items than the tortoise beast and the eight legs gave it a soft, even gait, even when running at high speed.

Their size meant they couldn't come into the city, and made passage through the forest a very destructive idea, but it also meant they could pass through the desert canyon without being attacked so the beasts would circle around the forest and approach from the desert.  
Right now several beasts were resting just outside the city while being loaded with tents and other equipment needed for the travel, and stay, at the Silver Lakes.  
The caravan would be leaving for the lakes in less than a week and the entire city was buzzing with activity, anyone who was able to would be leaving for the event, leaving only a skeleton crew to keep things running and protect the city, crops and livestock.

“Emelie! Do pay attention.”  
Maroue's voice brought her from her musings and made her bare her teeth at him with a hiss, he insisted on lecturing her and asking the same questions over and over, as if she would suddenly forget everything she knew.  
“Don't you bare your fangs at me young lady.”  
That was it, with a snarl she launched herself from her seat and knocked Maroue on his back, demanding that he back down and submit, which he soon did, he might be old, _Arai_ , but he was no fighter..  
Few things pissed her off as much as when he tried to pull the _parental discipline_ vibe with her, it didn't just set off her demonic instincts, it pissed her human side off as well.  
He would try to put himself in a position of authority over her, but as of yet he had done nothing to try to get to know her and that hurt, and the hurt turned to anger when he just dismissed it, or didn't even notice.  
The others just sighed and averted their eyes, the fights had become increasingly frequent and it was grating on Takeshi's nerves, even Knight was starting to show signs of stress from trying to help his alphas stay focused, and stable.  
The fight didn't last very long though as Emelie used her tail to toss Maroue to the side rather roughly before walking toward Lucifer, reaching out with her aura she brushed it against the dark fire of their host.

“Maroue giving you a hard time again?”  
Lucifer shifted slightly to make room for Emelie beside him on the bench in the shade of a tree, though as usual he offered her his lap, which she refused with a mock sigh.  
She was grateful that he didn't call Maroue her father, Roghan had explained that as long as she refused to acknowledge Maroue as her father they would respect that and not refer to him as such.  
Picking up on the frustration, pain and sorrow in her aura Lucifer carefully shifted his wing so that he could wrap it around her and pull her closer to his side.  
“He's an old fool, too set in his ways, and too stubborn to even consider that he might need to change a bit.”  
“I know, and I do understand. It's just that I can't trust him. I have tried, but my instincts refuse to, and if there is one thing I have learned from Take it is to trust my instincts.”  
With a quick glance she confirmed that Maroue had stepped outside the privacy-barrier surrounding the garden.  
“I have been meaning to ask, is it possible to have someone other than Maroue bring me before Lilith?”  
Lucifer couldn't help but to sigh, he had been worried that it would end up like this, with less than three weeks until the presentation he didn't think Maroue would be able to earn her trust.  
“It is. Any blood relative belonging to an earlier generation, or a Lord, or Lady, of the Land can be the one to bring you before her.”  
“So you, Roghan, or Ylian...”  
He wasn't the least bit surprised that she had figured out who Ylian was, what did surprise him a bit was that Maroue was completely unaware that Ylian was his younger sibling, skilled they may be, but the shadeling wasn't **that** good at hiding their identity.  
“Yes. And there will be quite a few others once we reach the Silver Lakes.”  
“Others that I don't know, don't trust.”  
Her words were no surprise, and Lucifer had his suspicions who she would choose, and it was a choice he approved of.  
“When it is time, I will ask you who you chose to stand at your side. Trust your instincts and choose freely. But for now, how about we worry about getting something to eat before your alpha takes a bite out of your beta instead?”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Move out!”  
Lucifer gave the order to the caravan master from his seat in the luxurious palanquin that was secured between a pair of large ox-like beasts and a moment later a loud horn blast rang out and was soon answered by several more blasts, making sure everyone knew the caravan was about to start moving.  
The caravan master's assistant moved out first along with a group of guards wearing the dark gray armor of the Imperial Guard, the caravan master would travel at the end of the caravan along with another group of guards, allowing him to watch over the caravan and make sure there were no stragglers.  
Once the guard section had begun moving it was time for Lucifer and the royal section to move.  
Takeshi, Emelie, and the others, had received quite a few glares when the caravan master placed them not only in the royal section, but right behind the palanquin, with Takeshi and Emelie in the same line as Roghan and Maroue, and Knight, Ylian and the twin angels right behind them.

The trip to the Silver Lakes was mostly uneventful, they only paused for daily hunts to secure additional food for the large group of demons, and while the hunters brought down whatever game they could find the others rested, the hunters would find themselves a nice spot on one of the behemoths and rest while they traveled.

“It's beautiful!”  
They arrived a day ahead of schedule as the weather had been unusually cooperative so they had been able to move with good speed and the rivers had been low and slow, making for easy crossing and Emelie was nearly falling out of the saddle in her eagerness.  
“Indeed it is.”  
Takeshi laughed at her antics, but agreed fully, the sight of the Silver Lakes spread before them was awe inspiring, there was a large central lake and several smaller lakes connected by slow flowing rivers and wide deltas, the lakes still, like mirrors.  
They were surrounded by tall grass, and low bushes, the hardy plains grass was a familiar green with an almost blueish tinge and large red plumes atop tall stalks.  
They moved slower now, passing a city of tents and simple marquees as they made way to the central lake where larger, more luxurious, dwellings, were being constructed.   
“I can feel her...”  
Emelie paused for a moment when her senses picked up on an aura unlike any she had ever felt before, it was immensely strong, and wild, and she knew it was kin, she knew that what she was feeling was Lilith.  
“She awaits at the central lake, though you won't be allowed to meet her until the night after tomorrow, when you are brought before her.”  
 _“I'm scared...”_  
The admission was reserved for her pack, and Lucifer.  
 _“Don't be, she will most certainly like you, and she will be proud.”  
“That's what you said about Maroue as well...”  
“Him being a stubborn fool does not make that untrue.”_  
To everyone's relief the dip in Emelie's mood didn't last very long as her attention shifted to the area of the beach where they would be setting up camp.

“You don't have to raise the marquee yourself if you don't want to.”  
Lucifer watched with a smile as Takeshi and the pack worked on raising the large tent that would be their home for the duration of the Festival of the Nine.  
“Go on, head to the market, explore and have some fun, I'll see to that your marquee is ready for you by sunset.”  
When they didn't show any signs of stopping their work Lucifer nodded to his guards, who started corralling the pack away from the marquee with wide smiles.  
“I don't want to see any of you back here until at least two of the nine have risen.”  
Lucifer laughed as his blood guard chased the pack away from the camp area toward the market with a mix of taunts and mock threats.  
The Obsidian Blood Guard were Lucifer's most skilled and trusted guards, though their job wasn't really to protect him as he was more powerful than all of them combined, their main job was to protect his privacy and keep others from disturbing him.  
Since they would also be in charge of the safety of Takeshi and the pack Lucifer had requested that Takeshi show them the truth and he had agreed, trusting Lucifer's trust in his closest guards.

"I love this market!”  
Emelie was dancing between the stalls at the edge of the market looking at the wares being offered.  
“Polish Iera's horns for a _Tama grain_?”  
A young demon girl speaking broken Urui approached with a jar of viscous liquid, several small jars with colored paste, and a bag with leather and cloth rags, offering to polish Emelie's horns for a grain of tama, a form of coinage that was 1/10th of a measure, or about 0.2 grams, which for Tama was the size of a large grain of rice.  
Tama was a demon metal similar to silver, but with a beautiful, violet, sheen, that was used as a currency for lower value trades, while gold was used for most higher value items, the tama grain that the young demoness was asking for was equivalent to asking for a dollar.  
“Okay, sweetie, but you have to promise to be gentle. These just grew in so they are sensitive.”  
“I promise Iera.”  
“Please, call me Em.”  
The girl blushed a brilliant green, telling them that her nature was probably some sort of forest elemental, but she refused to call Emelie anything but _Iera_ , which was more or less _Milady_ with the way she was using it.  
Using a soft cloth she began making sure there was no dirt or dust on Emelie's horn, while also carefully inspecting them.  
“Iera has very pretty horns.”  
“Thank you sweetie.”  
Takeshi watched with avid curiosity, and a hint of alpha driven suspicion, as the girl poured some of the viscous liquid into a bowl, then opened a few of the small jars and added varying amounts of powder that turned out to be some kind of pigment, into the bowl, then mixed it and prepared to rub it on Emelie's horns.  
“A moment please little one.”  
His instincts wouldn't settle down so Takeshi interrupted them and took the bowl from her hand and brought it up to his nose, carefully sniffing it and testing it with his aura before handing it back.  
“Go on.”  
“Iero is good alpha, careful alpha.”  
The young demoness smiled and nodded at him, clearly understanding his need to make sure the substance was safe.  
“Mother hen alpha.”  
Emelie quipped and after a moment of confusion Hugin explained to the girl what it meant and she joined the laughing.

“Here you go ama, thank you for making my horns all shiny.”  
Emelie put a small pile of tama grains in her hand instead of the single grain she had asked for.  
“Now you run along to the barracks tent of the Obsidian Guard, give them this, and tell them pack Kiryu sent you, they will make sure you get some food every day, and that you get a safe spot where you can sleep.”  
Takeshi handed her a small coin made from sanctuary crystal infused with his aura, and sporting the pack mark, which was a modified version of the Kiryu kanji.  
“Thank you Iero!”  
The promise of food and a safe bed with the Obsidian Guard had the girl hurrying toward the barracks tent.  
“You two really have an amazing hand with kids.”  
“We both feel strongly about helping the unfortunate children.”  
The way the young demoness was dressed, and the feel of her energies had told them she was alone with no one taking care of her, though in the demon realm that was less of an issue than in the human realm, a demon at her stage of development, roughly that of an 8-10 year old human, was capable of gathering food and at least basic hunting skills.  
Unlike the human realm there was plenty of food in the nature around them for the girl to gather, and there were a lot of simple jobs and errands she could perform for tama grains that could be used to buy food, clothes, or a safe spot to sleep.  
And with Takeshi making sure she would be fed and given a cot for the duration of the feast she would be able to save up more grain to purchase the things she needed, the bed and food wouldn't be entirely free though, she would be expected to help out a bit with the chores required to keep the barracks in running order.  
If she proved herself a diligent worker there was also a chance that the matron of the barracks would hire her, giving her a chance to work her way up to a rather respectable position as caretaker for the Obsidian Guard.

“Did you have a nice day?”  
Lucifer greeted them with a satisfied smile when they returned to the fenced of area that housed Lucifer's marquee as well as theirs and a few others.  
“We did.”  
“Ah I see you got your horns shined, how did that go with the new horns?”  
“It went well, they aren't quite as sensitive now, and she was really gentle.”  
“Good.”  
Stepping closer he gently ran his hands along her horns.  
“And it makes you look even more stunning.”  
Leaning in he placed a kiss on her forehead, though it was a struggle to keep to his promise and not give her a proper kiss, but judging from the low growl that could be heard from Takeshi it would be a bad idea to push as it might trigger his heat.  
Lucifer had noticed that the young alpha was barely able to contain his heat anymore, but he only needed two more days, then Emelie would be considered an adult.  
“Please, come here Take and let me soothe your fire.”  
Ylian carefully nudged Takeshi toward one of the many, small, sitting areas and began working the tension out of his body.  
“Thanks ami.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Father's Plight_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Em, it is time for you to prepare for tonight.”  
Lucifer gently brushed his aura against hers to wake her.  
It was still early, but there was a long, and complex purification ritual that she had to go through before she was brought before Lilith.  
They quickly gathered in Lucifer's marquee for a simple meal, the others restricting themselves to the same simple herbal broth that was all Emelie was allowed.  
“So, Em. Have you decided who will be at your side, who will stand _Shuumai_ and bring you before Lilith?”  
Maroue's aura was bristling and for a moment it seemed like he was about to object, but a sharp look from Lucifer kept him silent.  
“I have.”  
She looked up at the demons around the table, then looked at the four demons that she could choose from, starting with Lucifer, then Roghan, Maroue, and finally, Ylian.  
“Would you do me the honor of standing _Shuumai_ , Ylian, Arai Lilim, spawn of the great Shadow, my _susai_?”  
She had almost called Ylian _uncle_ because of how they seemed male most of the time, but she caught herself in the last moment and used the term for the siblings of one's parents from the shadeling language instead, _Susai,_ though, she was sure Ylian would not have taken offense.  
Ylian's flinch at the tone in her voice made the others snicker at them.

“I would be honored to.”  
There was a moment of hesitation before they spoke again.  
“Is this where you kick my ass for not telling you?”  
“Nah, if she accepts me I will need a durable training dummy to learn to control my new power...”  
Takeshi could have sworn that the shadeling blanched at her words.  
“As you wish.”  
Ylian had given their word to accept whatever punishment she wanted to give them and so they would, stepping closer they offered her their hand.  
“Shall we?”

 


	2. Fated

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi watched Ylian lead Emelie out of the marquee with mixed feelings.  
He hated knowing that she would have to face the rest of the day, and Lilith, without him being able to be at her side, but at the same time he was feeling an exhilarating anticipation, soon he would be able to stand before her, and Lilith, and offer her his courting gift.  
Without thinking he reached within his soul and brought out the handcrafted tessen, he had been meaning to give her the promised weapon so many times, but it never felt right, he had even bought one when he went shopping with Amanda and Eriko, but he had never given it to her, instead he had crafted one himself during their stay in the Obsidian Halls.  
“Your courting gift?”  
He almost jumped at Lucifer's voice, it was much too close to his ear.  
“Yes.”  
“May I look at it?”  
Takeshi didn't hesitate to hand him the folded fan.  
“Excellent craftsmanship. It's made from your body, your power. Right?”  
“It is.”  
“A most fitting gift. Offering yourself, when asking for her. Beautiful, but with deadly power hidden within, Just like her.”  
Lucifer handed the tessen back and Takeshi returned it to the safe place within his soul before taking a deep breath to calm himself.

“A bit nervous are we?”  
The usual teasing tone was gone and if anything Takeshi thought that Lucifer sounded almost fatherly.  
“The next time I speak to her it will be to ask for courting-rights, what do you think?”  
Takeshi's voice was bubbling with frustrated amusement.  
“As you should be then, it shows your heart is true. But don't worry too much, she will accept you.”  
“I really hope so...”  
“Take, you are a very desirable male, your physique, your mentality, and your sheer power, all mark you as an incredible alpha. But most importantly, she loves you every bit as much as you love her.”  
“I know she does. But I just can't... I can't help it... Can't help thinking of all kinds what ifs...”  
“Well then, how about we see if we can't find something to take your mind off it for now, shall we?”  
Lucifer laughed and motioned for Takeshi to follow him.  
“She made you promise, didn't she?”  
“Of course she did. Your little Emmy may not have awakened to her instincts yet, but she is every bit as much a pack alpha as you are.”  
“She will kick your ass for calling her that.”  
“I know, so I'm hoping you won't tell her.”  
“Ah, some blackmail material.”  
“Indeed.”  
The teasing exchange helped take Takeshi's mind of his worries and by the time they left their little private area the worries were momentarily forgotten.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Em, do you wish to take a boat, or cheat a bit?”  
Ylian pointed toward the group of small boats resting at the beach, left there to take the young Lilim and their Shuumai to the island where they would prepare to be brought before Lilith.  
“I thought it was not allowed for me to use my powers until I stand before Lilith?”  
“Only your power as a Lilim, but you are not just a Lilim are you?”  
“Shadow travel?”  
“Indeed.”  
“But I don't know where I'm going...”  
“Don't worry, it's not my first time standing shuumai at the great feast, I know where we are going. Reach out, allow yourself to feel me, and follow my power.”  
Stepping into the shadow of one of the tents Emelie could feel Ylian's power pulling at her slightly, offering support and guidance.  
For a moment there was nothing but a cool, calm, darkness around her and then the world came back, bright and vibrant as they stepped out from the shadow of a tree on another beach, this time on the beach of an island.  
“Come, let's go get you bathed and prepared for the day.”  
“My clothes!”  
She suddenly realized that she had forgotten to get the bag that held the clothes she was planning to wear.  
“Don't worry, I will have someone bring them here. You won't be wearing anything until tonight anyway, remember?”  
“Right, I almost forgot.”  
As a part of the preparations for her presentation she would be required to go through a purification ritual, a series of baths, special food and drinks as well as a bunch of other things, and to assure the purity of the place no clothes were allowed beyond the first bathing house.

Stepping into the simple wooden building they were met by a water elemental who quickly ushered them into one of the small side rooms.  
“This way Shirai Lilim, Shuumai.”  
Emelie quickly undressed and placed her clothes in one of the baskets, when no clothes were placed in the other basked she looked over her shoulder and found Ylian standing there still wearing their clothes.  
“Aren't you supposed to undress as well?”  
“I'm not actually wearing any clothes, shadeling, remember?”  
The teasing tone was obvious as they shifted their form slightly and the clothes vanished and was replaced by a naked form that was neither male not female, wisps of dark smoke hiding the groin area.  
“Oh, I didn't know your clothes were a part of your chosen form.”  
“I usually wear regular clothing, but since I would be required to be unclothed anyway I just left them at the camp.”  
“Now that's useful. I hope I will be able to learn stuff like that later.”  
“I'm sure you will, you already have mastery of shadow travel.”

“ _I wish they would at least have allowed us towels.”_  
Emelie complained as she walked into the bathing area, feeling rather uncomfortable with the way some of the other demons looked at her.  
 _“Most demons are not bothered by nudity.”  
“I know, and I'm usually not bothered myself, but the way some of them look at me is downright creepy. Especially since I'm not allowed to use my powers to show them my disapproval.”  
“Well, just point them out to me and I will show them. The young Lilim are accompanied by a Shuumai for a reason. Now raise that head and show them the pride that is Emelie, Co-Alpha of Pack Kiryu, daughter of Maria who gave her life for Hope.”_  
She closed her eyes and with a deep breath she straightened her back and squared her shoulders, Ylian was right, she wasn't some nervous little child, she may not have been challenged for her position, or won it by challenge, but she still an alpha by her own right.  
 _“Why don't you show them just what you are, show of those magnificent wings, beautiful horns and deadly tail, fang and claws?”  
“But aren't they part of my Lilim powers?”  
“Your body is not considered to be a power, even for a succubus.”_  
Ylian's tone was teasing, and gently scolding, reminding her that she was demon, not human.  
With a flicker of power her succubus form manifested fully and she had to admit it made her relax a bit.  
“There's my beautiful niece, strong, proud, confident, and deadly when she needs be.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take, would you care to join me to the training rings? It might do you good to blow off some steam.”  
“I would prefer not to reveal myself just yet.”  
“Don't worry, it's just practice, reveal only what you feel comfortable with.”  
Takeshi considered Lucifer's offer for a while before nodding, he did need to blow off some steam now that Ylian wasn't there to help him soothe his instincts.  
As they walked toward the training area they caused quite a stir, the demons could feel Lucifer's powerful presence, but they expected to see his usual giant form and many were looking around in confusion, completely missing him when he was only slightly taller than Takeshi.  
Since Roghan had dragged Knight away on some errands, Lucifer had adapted his height after Takeshi to make it easier to keep a normal conversation, and to not needlessly set off any dominance issues.

“Maybe show them your skill with the throwing needles? Or do you need something more, physical?”  
“I think starting with the _Harigata Bo-Shuriken_ might be a good idea.”  
When they arrived at the training area they headed toward the edge of the area where a group of archers were practicing their skills and after a few words with the master archer they were directed to one of the target-lanes and the demon who animated the targets was instructed to make them smaller and bring them in closer.  
With his strength Takeshi could have hit them at their normal range, but that would have revealed more about his abilities than he felt comfortable with.  
His performance was met by mixed reactions, the younger archers scoffed and sneered while the old masters praised his accuracy and power with the small projectiles.  
“Do not listen to those _Ambira_ , your skill is quite remarkable.”  
“Ambira?”  
The word the master archer had used was unfamiliar, perhaps not Urui, or an uncommon word.  
“Foolish whelps.”  
Lucifer supplied a quick translation into Urui.  
“How about a proper demonstration of your skill?”

Soon the entire range was cleared, and the five demons that were creating the targets were all gathered to provide Takeshi a proper challenge.  
He quickly secured all of his holders, glad that he had remembered to bring his bag so that he could bring additional needles from the shift.  
Focusing on so many targets was hard work, but it felt good to actually have to push the limits a bit, using both hands to take down targets before they could escape, or hit him.  
“Bah, there is no way he would be able to use that in a real fight. He would be hitting friend and foe alike.”  
For some reason the crude remark pissed Takeshi off and he quickly asked one of the telekinetic target demons to round up his needles while turning to talk to the others.  
“You are able to tell your targets apart, right?”  
“Of course, they are part of out aura so we feel when they are hit.”  
“Good, you will be my ally, the others will be hostile.”  
He pointed toward one of the demons and reached out with his aura and brushed it against the outer layer of the chosen demon's aura, asking permission to get a better feel for it which was quickly granted.  
The demonstration was repeated, but this time hitting only the hostile targets, while protecting the friendly targets from being _hit_ by the other targets.  
He knew he was showing off, but the display he gave them was one of skill, not power.  
“Anyone else care to tell me what I am unable to do?”  
He challenged the group, but no one seemed to be willing to step up and accept the challenge.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Do I really have to drink this? It stinks!”  
Emelie scrunched up her face at the pungent smell of the greenish brown liquid that sloshed slowly in the stone bowl.  
“Sorry, but yeah...”  
Ylian gave her a sympathetic smile and held out the bowl for her.  
“Yuck, this is just plain putrid!”  
She was struggling to keep the cold, slimy and slightly lumpy, liquid down, the foul taste didn't help, but after some retching she was able to keep it down.  
“ _Surströmming_ and _Hákarl_ has nothing on this stuff, it's vile!”  
She huffed and complained until Ylian handed her a small sprig of of what seemed to be some sort of mint.  
“Here, since it grows within the temple garden it is permitted for you to eat it. It will get rid of the taste, and help settle your stomach.”  
“You think the would let me take some seeds, or maybe a small plant of this stuff with me?”  
“Maybe, we can ask them. But for now, I brought some entertainment.”  
With a whirl of black smoke Ylian presented a leather folder filled with parchment pages.  
“I thought we weren't allowed to bring anything from outside in here?”  
“Usually you're not, especially not clothes or food, but I cleared these with the high priestess in charge of the temple.”  
“What are they?”  
Leaning forward she let her curiosity get the better of her.  
“Courting offers.”  
Ylian quipped with a grin.  
“Wait, as in proposals? For me?”  
“Exactly!”  
Time passed quickly as they laughed and joked about the rather ridiculous offers.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take, how are you holding up?”  
Lucifer's voice held a hint of concern as he watched Takeshi trying to calm his rapid, shallow breath and racing pulse.  
“Give me a moment.”  
The was a hint of a growl in the words and his voice carried traces of the duality that revealed that the shadow within was close to the surface.  
Lucifer allowed his aura to surround them, to calm the inferno of Takeshi's aura, and to hide as much of it as possible from the other demons who were watching the aftermath of the deadly challenge before them.  
He watched as Takeshi willed his body back under control, claws and fangs retracting slightly and the fiery red fading somewhat.  
A few steps to the side one of the assistants placed the headless body of a night-demon on a simple stretcher and quickly carried it away, only stopping for a moment to pick up the head along the way.  
Lucifer though back to the exchange that had triggered the short, but fatal, fight.

 

.·:*¨¨*:·.-Flashback-.·:*¨¨*:·.

“What is this _thing_ doing here? These rings are for adult males only!”  
Takeshi's head snapped up at the scornful words and quickly spotted the demon that had spoken.  
It was a young night-demon, the colors and embroidery on his clothes identified him as a Norai Lilim, son of the fae Tamlin, a noble of the Seelie Court.  
Lucifer could feel the tension returning to Takeshi's shoulders and he cursed silently to himself, he had spent nearly half a mark trying to help Takeshi relax so that he could remain in control and keep the heat at bay.  
While not as effective as when Ylian did it, it was working and now his efforts were undone by some uncouth youth with a big mouth.  
“I assure you, I am well past my majority.”  
Takeshi offered a way out of a challenge, but it was not heeded.  
“Oh, it wasn't your age I was questioning...”  
Lucifer let his hands drop from Takeshi shoulders and didn't move when he felt him reach back and grab the hilt of the ornate sword at his waist, Takeshi was expected to answer such an insult fast, and harsh.  
The night-demon had just smirked and drawn his own blade, confident that Takeshi would be no threat to him, a misconception that he did not have the time to regret as the obsidian blade flashed out once, severing the head from the body.

.·:*¨¨*:·.-End Flashback-.·:*¨¨*:·.

 

“Are you good to stay, or should we head back to our camp?”  
Takeshi's aura had finally calmed down enough for Lucifer to be able to pull his own back.  
“I'm fine, at least as long as no one else decided to be an idiot and accuse me of being less than a male. The Beast was not too happy about that.”  
Lucifer had no doubt that the demon within had reacted very badly to that.  
“Well, if you feel your control slipping do let me know and I will have one of the shadows take us back.”  
“I will, I have no desire to lose control of my heat when I'm so close. I want to be able to court her properly, even if it will probably be a scandalously short courting if she accepts.”  
“I have no doubt she will accept, and I would place my fortune that you will be mated by the end of the great feast. A lovely little scandal indeed.”  
Lucifer teased, and soothed, at the same time.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“They have no intention of giving us proper food, do they?”  
Emelie poked at the small bowl of thin gruel topped with various herbs.  
“I'm afraid not.”  
Ylian confirmed with a sigh while giving his own bowl much the same treatment, it was one of the things he hated about standing Shuumai, it was a great honor, especially for one that had no offspring of their own, but the food was horrible.  
“But there will be plenty to eat once your presentation is done. Though, you are strong so it will probably be pretty late for you, probably not until well after the rise of The Nine.”  
The presentation was one of the few times where the weak came before the strong, one of the reasons was to ensure that everyone stayed for the entire presentation, rather than sneak of once the stronger had been brought forth.  
Another reason was so that the presentation of the strongest would be the highlight, the starting point of the true feast, a feast that would last for 100 days, first 50 days until The Nine fully aligned and eclipsed, and then another 50 until the alignment ended and they all returned to their usual patterns.

“I'll have to deal with more courting offers once the presentation is done, won't I?”  
“At least one.”  
Ylian teased with a knowing smile.  
“He better, or I will throw tradition out the window and initiate a courting myself.”  
“I'm sure he will, and there will probably be others as well. I wouldn't be surprised if someone tries to challenge him for courting-rights.”  
“Isn't that up to me to decide?”  
“For the most part, but since he was your Guide, they can challenge him for the right to court you, but it would of course still be up to you if you mate them or not. They simply believe that by gaining courting-rights they would be able to sway you to their side during the 100 years that a full courtship lasts.”  
“Well, it won't be 100 years if Take and I court, I doubt it will even be 100 days...”  
“In a way you have been courting much longer than that though, just not formally.”  
“I guess we have.”  
She began to tell Ylian about how she had met Takeshi, not just the short version that they had told everyone.  
“I remember the first time I saw him, a stranger in fancy clothes telling me he needed to talk to me about something important about my family. My first thought was that he was there to tell me that my sister was dead. And I was right, only he told me she was my mother, not my sister.”  
She told Ylian about the turbulent days in Gothenburg, about how her grandparents cut their ties with her once she found out they were not her parents.  
Ylian couldn't help laughing when she told him about the somewhat troublesome reactions when her body began to prepare for the change.  
“That honor of his seems to get him into some rather interesting dilemmas.”  
“No kidding. Have I told you about Amanda?”  
“Not in any detail, you have mentioned her in passing only. Maybe after you finish telling me about all your adventures with Takeshi?”  
They still had quite a few hours before it was time for her to get dressed, head back to the beach and be ready to be called before Lilith.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Logan, have you found the gift you were looking for yet?”  
Roghan was leaning against a thick pole that had been driven into the ground to hold up the top of the large tent that housed several small market-stalls.  
“Not yet. It needs to be just right. It's not just any gift after all. It's her Ramhiri, I can't gift her with just any old trinket for that.”  
Roghan just shook his head with a smile, he had been through the same several times with his own children, and would again soon as his youngest should be ready for her presentation in a few years.

“Do you have any children of your own ?”  
The question made Logan freeze for a moment.  
“I can't know for sure, but I don't believe so.”  
There was a hint of sadness in Knight's tone that made Roghan regret his question.  
“You are still young, there is plenty of time. Maybe one day your Lilim will chose to birth you a daughter as strong-willed and beautiful as she is.”  
Even mated many succubus chose to bare children to several males, an instinct to ensure a greater chance of survival for her blood.  
“She is an alpha in my pack, and she will be mated to my other alpha. I would be overstepping just thinking of such a thing.”  
“She is Lilim, such things are common among our kin, even more so among the succubi.”  
“She will be conflicted by some of the Lilim breeding practices, keep in mind that she still thinks very much like a human.”

Knight knew they would need to talk to Emelie about it soon as her waking instincts would end up confusing, and possibly distressing her if they didn't explain.  
Humans as well as many mortal animals had an instinctive aversion against reproducing with closely related individuals, something that many Lilim lacked.  
Demons in general did not suffer the risk of compounding hereditary defects and it was not entirely uncommon among Lilim for even half siblings to have offspring to strengthen the Lilim blood, as long as any non Lilim parents were not closely related.  
It was something that also brought to light another major difference between most demons, and most humans, demons would often separate the biological aspect from the emotional one, breeding was not about emotion, but rather about the bloodlines, or as humans would see it, survival of the genetic code.  
Begetting offspring with someone they had a strong emotional bond with was preferred, but many would also breed with anyone they believed strong enough to strengthen their offspring, their bloodline.

“I'm not looking forward to explaining that part to her...”  
Knight sighed and moved to the next stall in search of a gift for her.  
“I can imagine it could be rather amusing to see Maroue trying to lecture her on that.”  
Roghan's smirk did hold a hint of pity though.  
“Yeah, she might really end up killing him if he does that...”  
Knight wasn't entirely sure how he felt about the entire situation with Emelie and her father, as much as he wanted them to have a normal relationship, he had to agree with her that Maroue was failing rather spectacularly at being a father to his daughter.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Mika told me that I should be prepared for quite a few negative reactions if I allow myself to be courted by Take. That many will object because he's not a highborn demon, because he's _flightless_...”  
Emelie's voice was low and somewhat hesitant.  
“I'm sure there will be a few, some will probably even try to challenge Take over it. And he will kill them for their troubles. But most will know well enough to keep their mouths shut.”  
“What about me, will I have to fight anyone?”  
“It's possible. But I don't think anyone will challenge you for the right to be Takeshi's mate, but if they do, you must not hesitate. You must strike fast, and you must strike with deadly force, be it claws, fangs and tail, or whatever weapon you can grab. If you do not you will lose the right to mate him.”  
“I won't hesitate.”  
There was a cold determination in her voice that gave Ylian a surge of pride, she may not be their own, but she was their niece, their true kin.  
“Don't worry so much, many will be deterred by the simple fact that you will have Lucifer backing your courting.”  
Ylian didn't mention that they were convinced Lilith would be backing the courting as well.  
“I guess...”  
“For now, let's focus on getting you to your next bath, and surviving another bowl of, what did you call it, _ruttet tapetklister_?”  
Emelie couldn't help laughing at Ylian's attempt at Swedish pronunciation.  
“Well, it tasted rotten and had the consistency of poorly mixed, lumpy wallpaper-paste...”

 

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Knight walked up to another fairly large marquee at the marketplace, the construction instantly revealed that the traders within were some sort of nature spirits as the very grass and plants of the plain had been made to grow, and reform into a large tent.  
Once inside he was met by the scent of a wide variety of herbs, fruits and vegetables as well as aromatic wood, sap and resin.  
For a moment he considered buying her a perfume necklace, but he quickly abandoned the idea, he enjoyed her natural scent far too much, and he knew Takeshi loved her rather unique scent as well.  
Looking around, he spotted a seed vendor in the back of the marquee and he instantly came to think of the various seeds Emelie had already from various sources, maybe a nice collection of seeds would be a good gift.

“If I may ask, can any of these be grown in the human realm?”  
The grass-demon that managed the stall looked a bit surprised at first but quickly answered his question.  
“Yes, they can all be grown within the human realm. Some easier than others and some will need some rather special care to be able to grow there.”  
“What kind of special care?”  
“This one for instance will need decaying flesh mixed into the soil where it grows. Ideally you would plant the seed in the corpse of a smaller animal, then once the seedling had grown a bit you bury a larger animal and set the seedling into it. Once it is fully grown it will need to be fed regularly. The easiest way would be to just place a body at its roots and once it is completely gone, bones and all, it is time to place a new one there.”  
The vendor continued to explain about the various seeds, one kind must never be exposed to direct sunlight, another needed to always have water covering its roots.  
He cautioned that one of them would grow long, razor-sharp wines that would attack and steal blood from any demons that came close to it, it could be trained however to not cause undue harm.

A sudden flare of power behind him had Knight spinning around in time to see a young tree-demoness grow one of her limbs out and shape it into a simple stool with a hidden compartment.  
“Apologies, I did not mean to startle you.”  
“No need to apologize.”  
Looking at her wares gave him an idea for Emelie's gift and he quickly motioned her to join him before turning back to the seed vendor.  
“Would you be able to make a box with all the different seeds here, including instructions for their care written in Urui.”  
“Of course.”  
Both demons instantly agreed.  
“Would it be possible to have it done before the presentations start?”  
They looked at each other and Knight knew they were communicating somehow.  
“A Ramhiri gift is it?”  
“That was the plan. She loves many of the fruits and vegetables she has come across here, but we will eventually need to return to the human realm.”  
“We can do it. And we will if the pay is fair.”  
Knight spend the following hour negotiating with the two demons, discussing the design, and what would be fair pay.

In the end he spent a substantial fortune, but had several things added to it, there would be shielding runes worked into the box that would keep the seeds viable for centuries while at the same time preventing them from accidentally sprouting if the box was exposed to moisture, light or heat.  
The box itself was alive and would produce a high quality humus and it would also sprout a small bush on top that would house demon insects that would be beneficial to the plants.  
He also bought a large selection of beads made from various perfume-woods with enchantments on each bead to preserve the scent and prevent them from breaking, several containers of tea encased in runes that would preserve the fragrance and taste of the tea as well as a few jars of herbal creams with similar enchantments to keep them from ever going bad., gifts for those who called the island their home.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“How about we go visit the market and pick up a few Ramhiri gifts for your little Lilim?”  
Lucifer had been keeping an eye on the increasing fluctuations in Takeshi's aura while trying to help him stay in control, at first the mock fights and competitions had helped soothe him, but now they were starting to have the opposite effect.  
His suggestion was met by a flash of fangs and a low growl but after a few moments Takeshi shook his head and blinked away the red haze from his eyes.  
“That might be a good idea.”  
Takeshi turned toward his sparring opponent and pulled him to his feet before giving a short bow, thanking him for the fight.  
Walking over to the to the master of the ring he handed him the two fighting-sticks with a slight bow, thanking him for having been allowed to train with his students.  
“Just let me get washed up first.”  
Takeshi had worked up a pretty good sweat sparring with various demons and he would rather not wait to get clean.  
“Of course, can't have you scare all the ladies away.”  
Lucifer wrinkled his nose in mock complaint, he didn't mind the scent at all, Takeshi was healthy and clean so his sweat didn't carry any unpleasant odors, it only made his natural scent stronger and added a slight salty tang.

At the simple bath Lucifer quickly waved off the water-nymph that approached to help Takeshi wash.  
“Apologies sweetheart, his blood is running hot enough as it is. But you can keep me company while we wait.”  
The nymph huffed at him with a smile before darting away to aid the next demon to step into the bathing area.  
“Do you intend to try to lure every female we meet into bed?”  
Takeshi snickered at him from behind the simple privacy divider of reeds woven together with supple wines.  
“Well, as much as I would love to lure you into my bed and spend the rest of the day enjoying copious amounts of what would no doubt be **very** satisfying sex. I think that might be a bad idea right now.”  
“Indeed...”  
Takeshi huffed slightly as he moved behind another divider where water had been manipulated by the nymphs to create a simple, but comfortable shower.  
On one of the walls the wines that held it together had grown a small pitcher-plant, the pitcher containing a simple, unscented oil that was used as soap and a towel of some sort of chamois material was hung over the edge.  
When Takeshi stepped out from the small stall Lucifer was holding out the top of the gi he was wearing, he had taken it off at the training area.  
Takeshi quickly put it back on before allowing one of the nymphs to brush and braid his hair.  
“These towels, may I ask what they are made of?”  
“Of course young master. They are made from the hides of Omarachai.”  
He didn't recognize the name and she quickly explained that it was a large water serpent that her people hunted for food and materials.  
“Would it be possible for me to purchase a few? I quite enjoyed the quality.”  
“Of course, but the ones we have here are of poor quality, not fit for sale.”  
Takeshi recognized the way of thinking, the unwillingness to sell an inferior product that would not properly reflect the skill of the artisan that made them.  
“Can I find them at the market?”  
“Yes, my spring sisters have a marquee offering our crafts.”  
She reached out and plucked a small, arrowhead shaped leaf from the vine before gathering a globe of water in her hand and allowing it to engulf the small leaf.  
“Take this, it will guide you to my sisters.”  
The globe of water was cool in Takeshi's hand and it tingled with power, but it maintained its shape and didn't feel wet, when he turned slightly the leaf within turned so that its point did not change direction.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“How many more of these horrible things will I have to eat?”  
Emelie glared at the empty bowl that had contained another serving of the stinky, slimy, lumpy, glop.  
“Don't worry, that was the last one, from now on we will be served a fragrant flower tea that is rather delicious. There will also be a variety of simple unleavened wafers with various flavorings.”  
“Good, 'cause I don't think I could stomach another serving.”  
“You did well, you took them all without more than pulling a few rather amusing faces, many of the others failed and had to do it over, some will even have to wait for their presentation.”  
Each of the young Lilim and their Shuumai were required to consume nine bowls of the vile mixture, one for each of the nine moons to prove themselves worthy of the honor of being presented during the great festival.

While they spoke one of the priestesses of the temple approached them, carrying a tray that held a pair of simple cups, a plate filled with wafers in various shapes and colors and a set of stone jars that smelled of flowers.  
Behind her another priestess carried a kettle, a small tripod and a container with fire-stones, she set the items up on the ground in front of them with a speed that told of a lifetime of experience.  
“You make take your water from any of the flowing streams, but the still water of the ponds is forbidden.”  
Emelie and Ylian nodded their understanding and thanked the two priestesses.  
“Oh, there's even some kind of honey here.”  
Emelie sniffed at the sweet smelling substance in a crystal decanter.  
“It's not honey, it's wood-sap.”  
“Oh, like maple or birch syrup.”  
She quickly grabbed one of the small fragrant wafers, a pastel blue one shaped like a flower and used the long, thin, crystal rod to place a single drop of the syrup in the middle of the flower.  
“There are really good! Do you think they would be willing to teach me how to make them? And let me teach someone else?”  
“I don't know, why don't you ask them?”  
Emelie quickly called for one of the priestesses to ask.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Let's go find the nymphs first, then we can browse the other stalls.”  
Takeshi was grateful for the makeshift compass, but the foreign energy grated on his senses.  
“Sounds like a plan, lead the way please.”  
When they entered the simple marquee that housed the nymph traders one of them instantly approached, no doubt sensing that Takeshi carried something made with their power.  
It only took a few minutes for Takeshi to place an order for a large amount of their finest towels, and the price was charged to the Obsidian Palace.  
“You do know I can afford to buy these myself, right?”  
Takeshi complained lightly at being spoiled, it upset his already agitated alpha instincts somewhat.  
“I know, but it would be a waste to use your finely crafted gold for simple things like these. Use it for the Ramhiri gift instead.”

They quickly made their way to the edge of the market area and began to make their way toward the center along the main path.  
The entire area was designed like a large spiral with marquees lining the path, toward the center the marquees were replaced by smaller stalls, all to make it easier for the browsing customers to find their way.  
They had made it through about half of the marquees when Lucifer found his gift for Emelie, a thick tome bound with leather, wood, and cold-forged metal that had heavy enchantments woven into the binding.  
Enchantments of protection to keep anyone from reading it without permission, to protect it from the elements, even water and fire.  
Others were enchantments of convenience, to summon the book to her side no matter where she had placed it, to always find the page she wanted, and it would never run out of blank pages to use.  
“She will need a good journal for her studies in demon magic.”  
He quickly added various ink-sticks and an ink-stone, as well as several bottles of enchanted liquid inks.  
There was a gasp from the quill-maker when Lucifer reached back and pulled a few feathers from his wings and selected a few of the beautiful metal nibs.  
“Would you combine my purchases into a kit please.”  
“Of course my Lord.”

While the craftsman began to show Lucifer the various bags and boxes he had to offer, Takeshi could feel Knight getting closer so with a brush of aura he excused himself and went outside to meet him.  
“Beta, Roghan.”  
“Take.”  
“Alpha.”  
Greetings were quickly exchanged and they found a seat around one of many small tables that littered the empty spaces between the marquees and as soon as they were seated a young demoness came and offered them refreshments.  
“So, not found anything of interest yet?”  
Takeshi glanced at the rather empty look bag that Knight was carrying.  
“Actually I have. It's being completed now and will be delivered to our marquee in time for the Ramhiri gifts.”  
“Oh, what did you find?”  
“Seeds. Demon plants that can be grown in the human realm. Fruits and vegetables, even a few decorative ones, and guardian plants. And a box to store them, and protect them as well as instructions for how to grow them.”  
“She will enjoy that a lot.”  
“How about you? Found anything yet?”  
Knight countered.  
“Not yet, Lucifer found her an enchanted tome and some writing implements in there, so that she can write a proper journal when she starts to learn about magic.”  
“It seems my father and I think alike, I found a shadow codex that I hope she will have good use of.”  
Roghan patted the heavy looking bag he carried.  
“Only me left then.”  
Takeshi muttered.  
“Oh, I'm sure you will find something.”  
Knight soothed before telling Takeshi about the presents he had bought for the rest of their household.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Let's go Em, it's time for your last bath before getting dressed.”  
She looked up from the low table where one of the priestesses was showing her how to mix the various herbs used to give flavor, and color, to the thin wafers.  
She quickly thanked the young demoness who promised that once the Feast of the Nine was over she would come visit the palace to continue the lessons, she also promised to bring all the seeds needed to grow the herbs and plants used.  
When they entered the bathing area all the other young Lilim and their Shuumai were already there, waiting for the priestesses to bring them the woven baskets that held their clothes.  
“Those are not the clothes I brought.”  
It was obvious that the basket contained the scholar's robe that Maroue wanted her to wear.  
“These were left for you by your father.”  
She could feel Ylian's cool aura push against hers, soothing her temper.  
“I have rejected my sire's claim to me, he has not earned the right to be my father, and I will not wear robes I have not earned by my own power. Bring me the hunter's garb that I brought with me.”  
“Of course.”  
Her demand caused quite a few surprised looks, the position of scholar was a high one, and most would gladly wear the robes if they could.

“Let me help you with that hair.”  
Emelie sighed and handed Ylian the brush before turning around and allowing them to brush all the tangles from her hair while using a touch of power to dry it.  
With her hair untangled she quickly got dressed, the heavy cloak was left in the basket though, she would put that on later.  
“Bring out all of your true form. I will make sure to braid your hair so it does not get tangled in your horns.”  
She did as Ylian asked, and they began to divide her hair so that the style would complement, and bring out her horns, showing off the fact that she had three fully grown pairs.  
Suddenly Ylian pulled their hand back with a hiss.  
“There is power here, power that does not like me touching it.”  
“Oh, I'm so sorry! I forgot about it.”  
With a moment of focus she brought forth the aquamarine crown that Artemis had given her.  
“What is this? It carries a lot of power...”  
“Artemis of the Hunt gave it to me so that we would be able to find the way to Atlantis.”  
“I see. You should wear it openly for your presentation, it's a testament to your power. You should proudly display anything that speaks to your strength and skill, the presentation is a time show off all that you are.”  
“Even if it's a weapon?”  
“Soul-blades, or weapons earned through trial, like your hunting blade, may be carried and displayed.”  
She nodded and reached within, bringing out her scythe.  
“Blade of my soul, designed and created by Doufaran of the Third Circle, reforged and awakened by Isa the Balrog smith. Though, I don't know her name as she has not spoken to me.”  
“A magnificent scythe, you should carry it with pride, and you should carry your hunting blade as well.”  
She nodded and returned the scythe to her soul, she would bring it, and the hunting blade, out again when it was time.  
She was glad that she had been able to learn how to place them both within her soul in a similar way to how Takeshi carried his blades.  
Leaning back she tried to relax while Ylian tried to tame her hair without touching the crown.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take-san, this way.”  
The sudden appearance of the dragon caused quite a few of the shoppers to jump back but Takeshi just looked at her and nodded, it seemed she had picked up on something of interest.  
Following her into one of the marquees he instantly sneezed at the strong scents inside, tables and shelves, boxes and baskets, all filled with jars, vials and bags filled with various substances and plants, even animal parts.  
A witch's shop, proudly display the ingredients for their magic.  
Next to a small table several large boxes were on display, each containing a wide selection of tools and ingredients typical to a selected school of magic.  
One held the tools, and bones of necromancers practice, another held small weights, scales and hundreds of small vials filled with herbs, a herbalists cache.

“This one, it carries the magic of dragons.”  
Kiryu changed her size and pointed to one of the boxes and the closest assistant quickly began to tell her of all its contents, but Takeshi found himself distracted, drawn to one that held the tools of a runecrafter and somehow he knew that it was what he had been looking for.  
“This one, can you have it wrapped and brought to the marquee of the Lord of the Obsidian Halls in time for it to be presented as a Ramhiri gift for one of the lilim please.”  
While one of the assistants scurried to do as asked he turned and watched Kiryu cut into her palm and crystallize her blood as payment for the dragon box.  
“For Amanda when we return, she is learning my magic well.”  
Dragon magic didn't use many tools, but the ones they did use were rare, and powerful.  
“I'm sure she will love it.”  
Takeshi agreed as he continued to look around in the marquee, he had a feeling there was something else in there he needed to buy and after a while his eyes fell on a small table displaying wands made from various materials.  
Some radiated power, others were just pretty sticks, but it was one of the closed boxes that drew his attention.

“May I see these?”  
“Of course young master. But be warned, these are special, they are fated and will only be sold to correct buyer.”  
When the box was opened it instantly became obvious why he had felt drawn to it, inside were a pair of wands, a silvery metal with a rainbow crystal at the top, but what made them so special was that they were identical, but mirrored.  
“They do not have special power, but they posses a calm energy.”  
The artisan that had made them quickly explained.  
“They should be perfect for my little twins, they are soul healers. Rainbow auras. Identical, but opposite.”  
The last part made the artisan perk up.  
“Twin girls, sparkling lights pulled from darkness. One green eye, one gold eye.”  
The words made Takeshi tense, it didn't seem like the artisan was a seer, but at the same time it felt right.  
“Flaming red when they borrow the form of the night hunter.”  
He added when the artisan had stopped speaking.  
“They are yours, I will charge no fee for them. They were made to be brought to your girls.”  
The artisan refused payment for the wands so Takeshi added a thick codex of healing and two of the boxes with the tools for making charms for healing and protection.

“Did you find what you were looking for?”  
Lucifer had waited outside, talking to a pair of wood nymphs.  
“I did, even found a few gifts for my girls.”  
“Good, then we should head back, get some food and bathe before the presentation starts.”  
“I won't be eating until she is allowed to.”  
“Tea then, by now she will have been allowed tea and _tiroli._ ”  
“Tiroli?”  
“They are similar to the communion wafers some of your churches use, but well flavored. They are served with fragrant flower tea and and a syrup made from wood-sap.”  
“Tea and tiroli it is then.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Are you ready for your presentation Em?”  
“No...”  
The look she gave Ylian made them smile and shake their head while holding out a hand to help her stand.  
“Come, the barge awaits.”  
She took a deep breath to steady herself before taking the offered hand and allowing Ylian to pull her to her feet and place her hunter's cloak over her shoulders, mindful of her wings.  
Outside the sun had begun to set and the presentations would start once the first moon began to rise.  
She and the others would wait on the barge, their Shuumai would be called by Lilith's herald and asked to introduce their charge, the Shuumai would then call their Lilim and introduce them to Lilith.  
“Ylian, there is one last thing I would like to ask of you.”  
“I will aid you in any way I can.”  
“When you introduce me to Lilith, would you honor my wish to have my bonds to Take, and my own accomplishments, placed above my bloodline, and my relation to Maroue last if mentioned at all. He has not earned the right to call himself my father.”  
They had spent quite a bit of time talking about what titles she could claim and she wanted her titles of merit to be placed before titles of blood and birth.  
“I will.”  
Ylian's words were simple, but a promise nonetheless.  
“Now relax. Once the barge leaves the island your pack will be able to sense you again, and if they feel you this agitated it's sure to cause them concern.”  
“I'm trying...”  
She leaned against Ylian's shoulder, allowing their cool aura to calm her.  
“Don't worry so much my little niece, You will do fine.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi was dozing off slightly, leaned against Lucifer's chest while the black-winged angel used his hands and his aura to calm raging instincts and soothe tense muscles.  
A slight flicker of energy at the edge of his awareness made him tense and look up, toward the lake and a few moments later he felt it again, but stronger, and this time Knight looked up as well.  
“She has left the island temple then.”  
Lucifer's words were not really a question, there was only one thing that would cause both of the males to react that way, they could feel their precious little Emelie again.  
“We should prepare for the main event then.”  
A few minutes later they could hear the large bells start to ring, announcing that the young Lilim were on their way.

It didn't take long for everyone to get ready and quarter of a mark later they were once again gathered inside Lucifer's marquee.  
“Take, Logan, you should carry your weapons openly this evening. It will attest to the power of your pack, and that will speak to her power as co-alpha.”  
Lucifer turned his attention to Takeshi alone before speaking again.  
“I know I probably ask in vain, but if you were to free your aura of the seals it would further speak to her power.”  
“I know, but I can't risk it. It may very well be the only thing that allows me victory if someone truly strong chooses to challenge me for her.”  
“I figured as much. But I had to ask. Now how about we go claim our seats and wait for the young Lilim to arrive?”  
Takeshi nodded and with a gentle tug on the bond with Knight he waited for Lucifer to lead the way.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“How long do you think it will take before it's my turn?”  
The long wait was making Emelie nervous, part of her fearing that she had been found unworthy, that Ylian's name, and thus her own, would not be called at all.  
“I don't know. The priestesses have gauged your strength and they have told the herald who will call us in order, the weakest first and the strongest last. And you are strong, so you will be called late.”  
Ylian didn't mention that they were sure she would be the last to be called.  
“How about we cause some trouble when it's our turn?”  
“Oh, what kind of trouble?”  
Emelie instantly perked up and turned to Ylian with avid attention, her worries instantly forgotten.  
“When we are called, we shadow travel rather than walk.”  
“But won't the only shadow there be that of Lilith?”  
It was extremely rude to step into, or out of, someone's shadow without permission.  
“It will, but Mother won't mind if I step into her shadow, and I won't mind if you step into mine.”  
“You know, you don't really feel much like a Lilim...”  
“Much to my mother's frustration the blood of my father is strong and I took most of my traits from him.”  
“Even Maroue doesn't recognize you despite being your full brother...”  
“A blind old fool indeed.”

When Ylian's name was called Emelie was sleeping lightly, curled into their lap.  
“It's time.”  
She instantly bolted awake and there was a brief trickle of fear in her aura but she squashed it and squared her shoulders, with a deep sigh she nodded to Ylian that she was ready and as they vanished into the shadow she called forth her weapons and readied herself to follow.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Fated_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi could feel the flicker of fear from Emelie when Ylian was called and it was with pride he felt her overcome it.  
A gasp ran through the crowd when Ylian appeared in Lilith's shadow, but the Mother of Demons just nodded slightly in greeting, not taking offense.  
 **“Speak Shuumai, name the one to be brought before me.”  
** As with those before, Lilith's voice carried clear and everyone instantly fell silent, and Takeshi found himself curious of how Ylian would introduce Emelie.

“I bring before you a Huntress of the Realm, Co-alpha of Pack Kiryu. Daughter of Maria who gave her life for Hope. Wielder of a Soul-blade born of Doufaran of the Third Circle and Isa the Balrog. Carrier of the Key to Atlantis, granted to her by Artemis of the Hunt. Seed-bearer of The Avatar of life. Child of your child, Child of the Shadow's child.”  
The murmurs were rather loud as the presentation was far from traditional, most would bring forth the Lilim linage first, but Takeshi was not surprised that Emelie had asked Ylian to change that.

“Come and stand before the progenitor of our kind, Emelie!”  
When Ylian spoke her name she appeared in his shadow, standing proud with all that she was displayed for all to see.  
 **“You failed to mention her beauty.”**  
Lilith teased as she inspected Emelie.  
 **“And her courage.”**  
Unlike the others, Emelie didn't bow and submit before Lilith, instead she raised her head and met her grandmother with a cold determination.  
 **“Strong, beautiful and every bit as proud as a Shirai Lilim should be. Yet, you choose to wear the hunter's garb rather than the robes of your father, why?”**  
“My sire has yet to prove himself worthy of the title of father. And I will not wear the mark of a title I have not earned by my own ability!”  
There were shocked gasps at her audacity but Lilith threw her head back and laughed.  
 **“A child of my own heart!”**  
With a flare of her overwhelming aura she silenced the crowd before speaking again.  
 **“Come, step closer and claim the true power of your heritage.**  
As she spoke she motioned for Emelie to step closer and Emelie followed the beckoning finger.  
 **“Never before has a Shirai of such power been brought before me. It is with pride I grant you your power, and my blessing.”**  
There was a new wave of whispers and gasps as Lilith leaned in and kissed the center of Emelie's forehead, the ones before she had merely tapped with a clawed finger, and no mention of granting them her blessing.  
While he watched Lilith lean in, Takeshi steeled himself, as did Knight by his side, the true awakening of a Lilim's power was painful, even their bodies would change to reflect their new power and that pain would travel through the bonds, but they had to stay calm, stay back until the change was over.

Emelie felt cool lips against her forehead, and an apology brushed against her mind.  
For a moment nothing seemed to happen but then a searing pain began to radiate from where Lilith's lips had touched her skin and it took quite a bit of effort not to bring her hands up as the pain grew stronger and began to spread.  
Determined not to show weakness she recalled her lessons with Takeshi and began focusing on locking down her body, forcing it to stay still, once she was sure she would not be able to move she began to pull on her aura , forcing it to flow with her will.  
Takeshi bit down on the growl that wanted to tear from him as he watched Emelie's wings flare slightly and her tail whip from side to side in agitation before stiffening and curling around her.  
He recognized the signs of locking down your body against pain, and soon her aura became visible as it twisted around her, faster and faster until she stood within a swirling tempest of her own making.  
Her raging power made both Ylian and Lilith take a slight step back, while the herald and the honor-guard fled the podium, even the demons seated nearest the podium were looking rather uncomfortable and quite a few were beginning to back away.  
Takeshi could no longer see her behind the whirling wall of her power, but he could feel her pain, and her focused determination.

Emelie could feel her body straining to change, the scaling on the limbs of her wings becoming more prominent, even sharper than before and the membranes tougher.  
Her tail grew longer and the shape of the tip changed slightly, losing its heart-shape and becoming longer, sharper.  
She wasn't the least bit surprised when she felt the now familiar feeling of horns breaking through skin.  
Her fingers, tail and mouth were tingling, and when she felt something drip from her hands and fall on her tail she realized she now had venom-glands similar to Amanda's and she found herself a bit curious as to what effect her venom would have.  
The lust inducing venom she possessed was not produced by venom glands, it was a crystallization of her aura.  
So far she had been bearing with the power flowing through her, allowing it to change her as it saw fit, but when she felt the power focus on her bones to make them grow she began to fight it, she had no desire to become taller.  
The sudden spike in pain almost made her cry out despite her efforts.

“ _She's fighting it...”_  
Takeshi's tone held a clear tone of concern, and fear, not knowing what had made Emelie suddenly fight the change.  
 _“Remember, the change in power will change her body, the power is probably trying to change something she does not wish to change.”_  
Lucifer tried to calm Takeshi down, but he could tell that he was reaching his limit and silently prayed that it would end soon.  
He had barely finished the thought when the tempest of power suddenly vanished and Emelie stood before them again, swaying slightly as she struggled to regain her senses.  
Ylian was instantly at her side to steady her while Lilith once again spoke, but Takeshi didn't hear the words, all he could see was Emelie, the way her power swirled, and the way it made him feel.  
 **“You have passed you ascension, all the rights of Ramhira are now yours, you may claim a plot of land within the realm of our kind. And you, Fated child of Destiny may now grant the right of courting upon those you believe to be worthy.”**  
The feelings evoked by feeling her aura, her true power had him breathless, and he realized it was what Roghan had called Simiriwi, the Calling, recognition of a true mate, he had sensed before that Emelie was right for him, but now the feeling was overwhelming, drowning out the voice of his instincts.

“ _It's time.”_  
Lucifer followed up on his words by showing Takeshi out of his seat and onto the smooth path that lead from their elevated box seat to the podium.  
Takeshi stumbled slightly but quickly recovered his balance and turned to flash his fangs at Lucifer, but there was no real anger behind, and all he got in return was a knowing smile.  
When Takeshi set foot on the stairs to the podium Emelie turned around to face him and he walked up to her in silence before kneeling down and holding out the folded tessen toward her.  
“Emelie Eriksson, would you allow me the honor of courting you?”  
Behind him the crowd suddenly went dead silent and he could feel them all focus on him and Emelie.

 


	3. The Eclipse

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi was struggling to keep his aura from revealing just how nervous he was and the silence seemed to last forever but he kept his head bowed, this was one of the few times he would show any submission.  
Then he felt her take the tessen from his hands and tap her wing on his shoulder.  
“Yes.”  
He looked up at her, but didn't rise, he would allow her to place her courting mark before he did, so all he did was turn his head slightly to the side to bare his left shoulder to her and she instantly leaned in and sank her fangs in deep.  
Takeshi gasped at the feeling of her new power, it was wild, and ice and for a brief moment he almost lost control of his heat but then it was over and she tugged lightly at his wrist with her tail.  
Rising to his feet he pulled her tightly against his chest and as he did she turned her head to the side so that he could mark her in turn, and as he bit down he heard a snickering whisper from Lilith.  
“Ah, I see why you refused part of your transformation. A significantly larger lover does have its benefits.”  
Once he withdrew his fangs the silence broke as the crowd began cheering and whooping, but mixed within were complaints and after a few moments a familiar voice rose above them, the young male that was supposed to buy the lizard creature that Emelie had bought.

“I wavered my claim on the creature, and brought the gold back to the Shirai Lilim in return for courting rights!”  
The crowd instantly stilled, waiting with baited breath to see how Emelie and Takeshi would respond.  
“I don't recall agreeing to your offer.”  
Emelie's tone was soft, but unyielding.  
“Then you will return the beast to me, and the gold!”  
The flicker in the males aura revealed that he knew he had no real claim.  
“She was numirial. It was not her place to grant, or reject, your offer. And as her guide I reject your request for courting rights.”  
Takeshi's voice was even but with a deadly edge and when the young male was about to speak up Takeshi cut him off.  
“Do not challenge me on this, I will not be able to stay my hand from delivering a fatal blow if you do.”  
For a moment it seemed like he would be challenged, but then the male backed away.  
“Well, if that's all done I would like a chance to have a word with my little granddaughter here. You will join my table at the feast!”  
Lilith's voice was light but there was no doubt she expected to be obeyed.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

After being more or less dragged to Lilith's table they once again told their stories, though Lilith seemed to be more interested in the more private, and intimate, aspects of their story.  
And much to Emelie's frustration Lilith constantly encouraged the slightly competitive teasing that Takeshi and Knight were so fond of.  
“Your alpha puts great trust in you, to allow you to touch his intended mate in such a way.”  
“Hmph, he is just really good at knowing where the lines are drawn, and which one he can push, and which to steer clear...”  
Emelie interrupted, but her words were cut short by a small hissing yelp as Knight grabbed her tail and ran his hand along it, followed by a slightly louder yelp when Takeshi grabbed her from Knight's lap and pulled her into his own, and then bit down into the bladed tip of her tail with sharp fangs.  
“Take, if you don't knock that off I'm gonna jump you here and now, spectators be damned!”  
Takeshi however just grinned at her and nipped at her tail again.  
“Oh, you just go ahead, I'm quite sure no one would mind. It wouldn't be the first time a show was offered during the feast after all.”  
Lilith quickly assured them.  
“You are just as bad as them!”  
Emelie complained, but Lilith just laughed and with one more nip at Emelie's tail Takeshi managed to push her over her limit and within moments they were engaged in one of their usual romps, completely ignoring the fact that they were currently seated at the table of honor.

“It seems like the marking is helping him stay in control.”  
Hugin's voice was low as he spoke with Knight, out of respect for their host they didn't hide their conversation.  
“We were hoping it would. A temporary marking had similar effects on me during my last heat.”  
“Oh, what is it I hear about a heat?”  
Knight cursed rather loudly when Lilith's breath brushed against his ear, he hadn't noticed her move.  
The ancient demoness just laughed a soft, purring, laugh, as she slipped into his lap.  
“Well, come on, do tell me.”  
There was no point trying to refuse her.  
“The energies of the demon realm brought on the onset of his first heat, and in order to ensure that he would be able to spend it with Em he has been suppressing it. And he has been having increasing problems staying in control.”  
“Ah, sounds like we will have a scandalously short courting to look forward to. How delightful.”  
It seemed like Lucifer's suspicion about Lilith's reaction to the situation was accurate.  
Knight couldn't help feeling somewhat curious when Lilith slipped out of his lap and began to sneak up on Takeshi and Emelie, and Emelie's reaction when Lilith caught her tail and gave it a sharp nip had everyone laughing, it seemed Lilith was intent on testing their limits.  
Lilith quickly crawled back into Knight's lap and settled down to watch the two, offering occasional teasing commentary, but after a while her amused smile began to turn into a frown.

“Does she always hold back like this?”  
“Unfortunately, yes. She's afraid of losing control of her power and hurting him.”  
Knight's answer had Lilith tutting softly.  
“And he always tries to pull out her power, encourage her to open up?”  
“Since he acted as Guide for Amanda. As he taught her, she also taught him, showing him what it can be like to be with someone who opens their soul completely.”  
“I guess I will have to add a few more lessons to her training as she learns to control her full power.”  
It was the boon granted to the strongest Lilim of the presentation during the Feast of the Nine, Lilith herself would teach them during the 100 days of the full event.  
“Oh well, how about I have some fun with you while we wait for those two to come up for air?”  
She accentuated her words with a slight push of power, the familiar seduction of a succubus and an increase in pheromones, but before she had a chance to lean in and give him a kiss laced with her own particular brand of poison she was interrupted by a tail wrapping around her arm in warning.  
The combination of Takeshi's warning growl and Emelie's displeased hiss made it clear that they did not appreciate Lilith targeting their friend, their pack-mate.  
“My my, protective are we? Don't worry, I'm not going to eat him, just planning to have a bit of fun, he won't be harmed.”  
While her words did make them quiet down a bit they were still objecting.  
“I do believe they are trying to say that he is theirs.”  
Lucifer quipped while patting his own lap, offering to be the one to entertain her instead.  
“Oh well, I guess I will have to settle with you for now. There should be plenty of opportunities once they are mated.”  
The obvious tone of disappointment in her voice made the others chuckle and toss teasing barbs his way.

The sun was just starting to rise when Knight once again found himself nearly jumping out of his seat when a familiar voice whispered in his ear.  
“The way you watch them, you are in love with her, aren't you?”  
“Him, actually...”  
“I see...”  
There was only acceptance, and a hint of amusement mixed with sympathy in her voice.  
“I do love her as well though, just not the same way. Not to mention she is quite desirable.”  
There was a sigh of longing in Knight's voice.  
“You have fed her, haven't you?”  
It seemed Lilith somehow knew that he hadn't actually slept with Emelie, and it obviously confused her somewhat since she could feel the blending of energies that came with repeatedly feeding a succubus.  
“I have, but she always feeds from my life-force. She has refused to actually lay with anyone other than Take. Wanting him to be her only partner, at least until they are properly mated.”  
“For being so strong, she is remarkably human.”  
“That she is, but it might be what makes her so strong...”  
“Perhaps.”  
Lilith agreed softly.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi and Emelie had only slept for a few hours when a commotion outside their marquee woke them up rather roughly.  
“What is going on?”  
Takeshi didn't bother getting dressed, he merely grabbed the thin demon-silk blanket and wrapped it around his waist before heading outside.  
A large caravan wagon pulled by a lizard-beast of some kind stood in the empty area between the tent that he shared with his pack and the twins, and the tent that Lucifer and Roghan used.  
“Remember the night-demon that challenged you yesterday?”  
Lucifer offered with an amused smirk.  
“Yes, under demon law I was well within my right to kill him.”  
“Indeed you were. And under the laws specific to the night-demons all that was his is now yours. His lands, all his holdings, titles, and as he was of the Blue Sands, even his mates and children are legally yours. His father will no doubt be here soon to test you to see if you are worthy to claim his son's place in the Seelie court as well.”  
“Great, having to deal with fae is the last thing I needed right now.”  
Takeshi's frustrated sigh made the others laugh.  
“Don't worry, the fae have great respect for courting pairs, it will be kept brief to minimize the disturbance.”  
Knight reassured him, but Takeshi had a feeling that it would be trouble nonetheless.

“I guess I will need someone to get me up to speed on the finer details of night-demon law. I would prefer to have some idea what to expect.”  
“I might be able to be of service in that.”  
The young female that sat atop the wagon spoke up, but she didn't look at him.  
“And who are you?”  
“I am Seia. Under night-demon law, I am your mate.”  
She looked up slightly, but everything about her screamed submission, to extreme levels.  
“Unless you choose to reject me.”  
As she spoke her aura became tinged with fear, and Takeshi had a feeling that rejecting her could be a very bad thing for her.  
“I will do nothing until I know what I'm doing.”  
The relief in her aura was obvious.  
“Now Seia, do you have a tent or marquee packed in that wagon?”  
Again there was a tinge of fear in her aura, a fear of rejection.  
“I do.”  
“Good. As you probably know I initiated a courting last night, and I'm afraid my Em won't be able to tolerate you living in our marquee since you are not pack. But don't worry, it will be temporary.”  
Takeshi quickly explained to her before turning to Hugin and Munin to ask them to help set up Seia's tent.

“This is the only tent you have?”  
Takeshi looked at the small, tattered piece of leather and the rather short wooden poles that made up Seia's shelter, a simple tepee in very poor condition.  
“Yes, the marquee we were staying at belongs to my late mate's brother.”  
“Well, this is unacceptable.”  
Takeshi quickly turned to Lucifer.  
“Do we have any spares?”  
“I'm afraid not.  
“Hugin, Munin, would you please take Seia and go buy a suitable tent.”  
“Of course.”  
Once they had left Takeshi turned to Lucifer.  
“If I reject her, refuse to take her as mate, what will happen to her?”  
“She belongs to one of the most extreme tribes, their females are little more than property. If you reject her she, and her daughters, will become tharas, while her sons will be taken in by her mate's family. But you should know, for a female of the Blue Sands, being tharas is not as much being an outcast, as it is to be public property.”  
The snarl that followed Lucifer's words was so furious it made the guards at the edge of their camp area jump slightly in concern.

“Well, one thing is for sure, you will not be rejecting her!”  
Emelie's voice from the entrance to their marquee instantly put a stop to Takeshi's growl.  
“Can the decision be delayed long enough for a formal mating?”  
Her tone was sharp, demanding, all alpha.  
“Yes, for 100 days.”  
Lucifer didn't take offense to her tone if anything it further elevated his respect for her.  
“She does not enter our marquee, and you Take, will not enter hers, or be alone with her until after our mating.”  
“ _Hai._ ”  
Takeshi just agreed, Emelie's restrictions were only there to make sure she could stay in control of her instincts, as long as Seia didn't challenge her it should be enough.  
Both of their instincts would be a bit strained around others, around those who could be possible competitors.  
Takeshi was fine with Knight due to their bond, and the twins' oaths soothed his instincts, Roghan and Ylian was fine due to their close familial relation with Emelie, Lucifer on the other made him tense and it didn't help that Lucifer seemed to enjoy setting off Takeshi's instincts.  
Maroue was causing some issues because Takeshi could feel that he for some reason disapproved of the courting, but Maroue was at least wise enough to keep his mouth shut about it.  
Emelie had similar issues with Lilith, who also seemed determined to tease them as much as she could, Mika on the other was fine because she was mated to her soulmate.  
They both had some issues with Lucifer's servants and guards, but those had plenty of experience at keeping themselves invisible, unnoticed by raging instincts.  
Despite that they had decided that they would only leave their small camp to attend the evening meal for a few days to allow their instincts to settle a bit, and give Emelie a chance to practice her control a bit.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take?”  
Hugin called from the doorway of their marquee.  
“Ah, how did the shopping go?”  
“We found a nice marquee for Seia and her children. I hope you do not mind that we purchased some furnishings, as well as clothes and a few other things. Very little of what is in that cart is for her or her daughters. Most was her mate's, thus intended for their sons.”  
Hugin didn't even try to hide his distaste for the ways of Seia's tribe.  
“Of course I don't mind. Why don't you have Mika help you make sure they have everything they need. Seia might be more comfortable speaking with another female.”  
“I will.”  
For a moment Hugin stood there in silence, then he seemed to make up his mind about something.  
“How much do you know of her tribe?”  
“Not much yet, other than that they are extremely patriarchal, to the point where females are quite literally property.”  
“They call themselves the Children of the Blue Sands after the desert area where they live and their rather extreme ideas has made them ostracized from most demon societies, even here they are barely tolerated.”

Hugin told Takeshi what he knew about Seia's tribe, while most demon societies were mostly equal, or even matriarchal, even among the night-demons, there were a few exceptions, and the Children of the Blue Sands were the most extreme.  
Their females were granted no rights, they could not own property or earn money, if their keepers allowed them to work, anything they earned belonged to their keeper.  
They had no right to chose their mates, and they had no right to refuse their mates anything, even sex, even if their mate ordered them to sleep with someone else, within the Blue Sands a male could legally prostitute his mate, even his daughters once they had undergone their first rite of passage.  
Takeshi's growl grew louder when Hugin told him that the first rite for their females was quite different than it was for other demon cultures, while they still adhered to that the female was not to be harmed, her willingness was less important, she was expected to do as she was told by her father, or keeper.  
And the young female was not taught about the pleasures to be had, she was only taught how to please the males.  
“I won't allow that!”  
Takeshi was tethering on the brink of control as Hugin approached him slowly, for once he didn't seem to have any problems keeping his energies submissive.  
“I know you won't. You are a true _alpha_. However unintentional. they are now yours. Yours to care for, to protect, and your honor won't allow for anything less.”  
Hugin stopped in front of Takeshi, turning his head slightly to the side to bare his neck he just waited.  
He still had to force himself to keep still when Takeshi grabbed him by the shoulders and gave his neck a sharp nip before releasing him.  
“Feeling more in control?”  
Hugin waited until Takeshi's breathing had slowed down and his aura wasn't lashing out around them before he spoke.  
“I do, thanks. I know you hate submitting like this.”  
“I don't mind, I really don't. My instincts might rebel, but it's getting easier. Your instincts are running high now, the heat, the courting, and now this mess. You needed me to submit to soothe those instincts.”  
Takeshi reached out for Hugin and placed his hand on his mashen, sifting through the soft feathers while gently dragging his claws against the sensitive skin, trust, gratitude, acceptance.

With Takeshi once again a bit more relaxed, Hugin continued telling him what he knew of Seia's tribe until Munin joined them to inform them that Lucifer had invited them all to share a meal in his marquee.  
When they stepped inside the large marquee Seia's children had joined them, four daughters and two sons.  
“Seia, would you introduce us please.”  
It hurt him to see how she scrambled to as he asked, and it hurt even more to see how her daughters cowered and scrambled to try to serve him and the other males at the table, even their brothers, who were actually ordering them around as if they were servants, or slaves.  
“Arath, Toben. That's enough. Your sisters are not servants, do not treat them as such.”  
Takeshi's voice carried a distinct growl and when they seemed like they were about to object he enforced his will with a push of his aura before he turned to Seia and her daughters.  
“If you are to be members of my house you need to learn that you are not servants, nor slaves. While I will occasionally demand obedience you are not expected to serve, or be subservient.”  
The way Arath sneered behind Takeshi's back while he was speaking to Seia and her daughters had Emelie concerned, it was obvious that the older boy did not agree with what Takeshi was saying so she reached out over their new bond and shared what she was seeing.  
 _“I know, I can feel it. I fear he might be too accustomed to their ways, to the power of it. I might not be able to change his views, we will have to keep an eye on him.”  
_

Once they were done eating Takeshi sent Hugin, Munin and Mika out along with Seia and her children to do some proper shopping.  
“Ylian, I would like to ask you a favor.”  
“Ask away, I will do whatever I can to help.”  
“As a shadeling, you are a greater shadow. That means you are able to create _Shikigami_ , or spirit dolls, right?”  
“Yes, we call them puppet-spawns. Why?”  
“Can you make one for each of them, to keep an eye on them, and alert me if something is wrong?”  
“I can. I will.”  
“Thank you.”  
 _“You gave me your word that you would assist me in becoming pana, This is nowhere near enough to replay that.”  
_ Ylian added silently, not entirely comfortable with speaking about it openly.  
Takeshi just nodded slightly and turned to Lucifer.  
“If I'm to be able to protect them, I will need a formal House for them to be placed in. I know one would be formed when Em and I get mated, but I don't feel comfortable waiting that long.”  
“I figured you wouldn't, so I have prepared the documents needed.”  
Lucifer handed Takeshi a rolled up scroll.  
“Sham.. _Shamarai_? Moonflower?”  
Takeshi read the house name written in the runes of the Obsidian Halls.  
“Yes, it can also be read as _Spirit_ , or _Hope_...”  
“I like it.”  
“I thought you would.”  
Lucifer turned toward Emelie as he spoke.

“I have one for you as well, normally you would be considered to be of Maroue's house until your mating, but you have rejected him, and thus his house. So you should have one of your own.”  
He handed her a scroll just like the one he had given Takeshi and she opened it to read it.  
“ _Miri_ , Destiny?”  
“It was your grandmother that picked it.”  
“So once we are mated, we will be House Shamarai Miri?”  
“You will.”  
“I think I can live with that, what about you Take?”  
“I think I can manage.”  
“I still prefer being Emelie of Pack Kiryu though...”  
She pushed against Takeshi with a low purr that instantly lit the familiar fire and pulled on his control of the heat.  
“Don't mind me, I'll gladly wait while you get that out of your systems.”  
Lucifer quipped as he leaned back, obviously intending to watch them if they allowed it.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“You need to learn to trust yourself.”  
Lilith sighed as Emelie once again hesitated to release her power.  
“Come here little one, let's talk.”  
She tutted softly and patted the pillow next to her.  
“You spend too much of your focus on worrying about hurting others. Your powers are a part of you, they won't harm those you do not want to harm.”  
“I was barely able to control it before you unlocked even more power...”  
“That is because you didn't have your full power, part of your power was being used to seal the rest. Normally a human born Lilim is raised by their fathers, teaching them all the things they need to know about demon society. And they are brought before me within days of their change.”  
Lilith pulled Emelie close into her side before unfurling her wings and wrapping them tightly around them.  
“With your power partially sealed, it was unbalanced, making it harder to control. And you have so much power, you are stronger than any of my other grandchildren, even stronger than many of the children I have given birth to myself.”  
“Yeah, lot of good that does me...”  
“It's not without reason I named you house _Miri_ , you are a child of destiny, the Fates have given you an important task. And that task will take power, walking by his side as his mate will not be easy.”  
Lilith continued to explain to Emelie that one of the reasons why Takeshi had to be the one to bring her through her change was so that her power would know his.  
It made his energies a part of hers, changed her power to be more in tune with his, changed it into something that wasn't entirely demon, but not human either, changed it into something new, or perhaps, something very old, older than Lilith, older than mankind, maybe even older than the very universe around them.  
“He's an _Avatar_ , isn't he..? Just like you, Lucifer, my grandfather, even Ylian...”  
“He is a potential, someone born with the ability to one day become one of the Avatars.”  
“Just what are the Avatars anyway?”  
“That my sweet girl, is a lesson for another day. For now, how about I teach you a few things to test the control of that alpha of yours?”  
“Oh, that sounds like fun.”  
Emelie grinned at the idea of Lilith teaching her how to ruffle Takeshi's feathers so to speak.

“Munin, come, join us. I require someone to help me demonstrate.”  
Lilith beckoned the guard to step closer.  
“ _Nana_ , don't order my poor little raven to do things like that!”  
Emelie chastised with a laugh and for a moment Munin looked rather horrified at her addressing Lilith with such familiarity.  
“Oh, it was merely a request, not an order.”  
“Coming from you, it would be treated just the same.”  
“Don't worry ama, her request is one I would be honored to fulfill.”  
Munin spoke as he walked slowly toward them, removing his armor as he did, leaving only the simple tunic that he wore beneath, once he reached them he kneeled down and spread his wings in submission.  
“Within the limitations of my oath to Pack Kiryu, I am yours to do with as you please, my ladies.”  
The slight black tint that was creeping up his neck was the only thing revealing his embarrassment, and excitement.  
“He is rather cute, your little raven. And such a powerful love in his heart.”  
Lilith's words caused the black tinge to deepen and begin to spread down his torso and when she reached down and began stroking the base of his wings his entire body took on the black tinge of his blush.  
“Now, your alpha is not winged, so with the lack of a mashen his sensitive spots will be slightly different. But I'm sure you know where they are.”  
With a skill born from thousands of years of experience Lilith used Munin's body to show Emelie a few more things about bringing pleasure, about pushing a male to the edge, and keeping him there.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“I **will** get your grandmother for this...”  
Takeshi hissed as Emelie tested the new tricks Lilith had showed her.  
“She offered to give you a few lessons as well...”  
There was a slight grumble in her tone, she did not want to tell him about that, but she knew Lilith would know if she hadn't and would find some embarrassing way to punish her for it.  
A sudden tingle of awareness from one of the puppet-spawns that Ylian had created to watch over Seia's children brought Takeshi from the edge and into clarity.  
“Em...”  
“I know, I felt it.”  
With a flare of power they vanished from their pile of bedding and appeared in Seia's marquee just in time to see Arath backhand Shisi, sending the girl to the floor and a moment later Ylian arrived in the same manner.  
“ _Stop!_ ”  
Takeshi's voice was heavy with _command_ as he jumped in between Arath and the girl, not taking any chances.  
 _ **“What do you think you are doing?**_ **”**  
The duality that entered Takeshi's voice revealed that the demon within was just as upset as he was.  
“I am Arath, eldest son and heir of House Miara! As a daughter of my house she is mine to do with as I please and she **will** obey me!”  
“House Miara ended when you father challenged me and lost. You are House Shamarai now and the ways of the Children of the Blue Sands are not our ways. If you can not accept that you are welcome to leave, or become _Tharas_.”  
Takeshi unfurled his aura and allowed it to bear down upon the young demon in front of him.  
“You will not order your sisters, or your mother around. And you will never lay a hand on either of them, ever again. **I** am the head of House Shamarai and you will obey.”  
Takeshi could have used _command_ to force obedience, but instead he chose to test Arath, give him one last chance.  
But the way Arath scoffed when Takeshi turned to help Shisi up wasn't promising, the boy either believed his senses to be too weak to notice, or didn't care if he did.

“Shisi, don't be afraid, I'm not upset with you.”  
The way she shivered and tried to make herself smaller, crawling back against the reinforced wall of the marquee, made a part of Takeshi want to just take Arath's head from his shoulders.  
Shisi was the third youngest of the children, has she been human Takeshi would have estimated her to be about 4 maybe 5 years old, but she was probably closer to 30 years old, night-demons matured slowly.  
Toben was the youngest, then came Noia, Shisi, Leeah and Moira, then Arath who was the oldest.  
“Come here, let me take a look at you.”  
Her lip was still bleeding sluggishly, her fear disrupting her energies and making her heal slower, and the dazed look in her eyes had Takeshi worried that she might have a concussion.  
It was a struggle to resist just picking her up, but he waited until she came to him herself and once she did he wrapped his aura around her and began searching her aura for any signs of injuries beyond what he could see.  
He was relieved to find that other than the split lip and a developing bruise she was unharmed, the dazed look had been from shock.  
“I need you to relax for a moment so I can help you heal that bruise.”  
“Okay...”  
Her voice was low and her Urui was heavily colored by her native language of the Blue Sands.  
Takeshi sighed when she flinched away from his hand as he reached out to help her energies focus on healing.  
“Easy, I'm not going to hurt you.”  
Once he was satisfied with how the bruise healed he used a claw to cut his thumb and smear a drop of blood over the cut in her lip, instantly sealing it.  
“There, all better, right?”  
“Mhm..”  
She nodded slightly.  
“Now run along to your mother and show her that you are okay.”  
He watched her skip past Lucifer and Roghan in the doorway of the marquee and with a sigh he addressed Lucifer.

“Could I borrow a few guards for a while?”  
“What for?”  
“I don't want to allow Arath another chance to harm a female. So I don't want him to go anywhere without a guard to keep an eye on him.”  
“I will assign a few guards to it. And I will make sure to pick those who are the most avid supporters of your views on how a female should be treated.”  
“You have my gratitude.”  
Takeshi gave a slight bow.  
 _“No need for such formality, I happen to agree with you. Not only did he strike a female, a mere child simply for not being obedient like a slave, he took pleasure in it.”_  
The concern was heavy in Lucifer's tone.  
 _“I was hoping I had misinterpreted that feeling.”_  
Takeshi almost sighed out loud.  
 _“No such luck I'm afraid. I couldn't tell if it was the power he enjoyed, or the inflicting of pain. But either is just as bad.”  
“I will give him another chance, but that's it. I will not risk the others just for his benefit.”  
“Spoken like a true alpha. Now you grab that future mate of yours and get back to what was no doubt something rather pleasurable, and I will see to that the boy is informed of his new restrictions.”  
_It wasn't until Lucifer mention his and Emelie's previous activities that Takeshi realized that both him and Emelie were completely naked.  
“I have spent too much time with demons...”  
He muttered with a sigh before grabbing Emelie and asking her to take them back to their bed.  
Their courting had barely started and things were already a mess.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

On the 5th day of the alignment Tamlin arrived along with a group of fae to test Takeshi's worthiness.  
“Worry not, these tests will not affect your courting.”  
Tamlin assured Takeshi before asking to speak with him in private.  
“Your mate-to-be can wait behind the screen, they are enchanted to grant privacy so she can see us but not hear us.”  
One of the fae indicated toward the decorated screens, similar to shōji screens, that were used to divide the large marquee.  
“My beta will wait with her as well.”  
“Of course.”

Tamlin kept asking all kinds of questions, most of them seemingly irrelevant, but Takeshi had enough experience to know that they were not, and Knight had warned him repeatedly about the ways of the Fae.  
The Seelie Court might not be as malevolent as the Unseelie Court but they were still very dangerous creatures.  
“Okay, may I speak for a moment?”  
Takeshi spoke up when Tamlin paused for a moment.  
“You may.”  
“I mean no disrespect to your court, or the fae in general. But I have no desire to sit as a ruling member of your court, even if it is as a lesser prince. I'm not fae and I should not rule over fae. I feel that the title should be given to Leeah once she reaches her majority, she is a brilliant girl and given a chance to develop I believe she would make an excellent member of any court.”  
“Leeah, she is the third child. Why not Arath, the son, the eldest, or Moira?”  
Tamlin questioned in return.  
“Arath is cruel and relishes in having power over others, in dominating those who cannot defend themselves, taking pleasure in inflicting pain and fear on those weaker.”  
“And you know this how?”  
Takeshi braced himself for a moment, getting his anger under control.  
“I have seen it with my own eyes, in the way he treats his sisters, the servants, and any female he meets. Look into my mind if you do not trust my words.”  
“It is not a matter of trust, I need to see this for myself. So try not to fight me.”  
“I know the drill.”  
Takeshi sighed and prepared for the intrusion into his mind, and he was slightly surprised at how gentle Tamlin's mental touch was.

“I see. Indeed unsuitable. And Moira?”  
The contact only lasted for a few seconds before Tamlin's mind withdrew.  
“She is a gentle soul with an even gentler heart, it would destroy her to have to make the harsh decisions of a ruler.”  
“It is indeed not something suited for all.”  
Tamlin nodded his agreement.  
“I would however be most grateful if I was allowed a consulting position of sorts, to be allowed to hear and speak in matters that involves the human realm, the mortals within that realm, or the balance of the realms.”  
Tamlin looked at him in silence for a while before nodding slightly.  
“You have spoken with wisdom and honor so I will consider your words and a messenger will be sent once I have made my decision.”  
“Just warn the messenger not to enter the marquee, neither I, nor Em, are fully in control of our instincts right now.”  
“Worry not, they will be properly briefed. I have no desire to lose a messenger to the folly of disrupting a courtship.”

The following day a female fae arrived at their camp and asked to speak with Takeshi and Emelie.  
“Lord Tamlin has made his decision. Takeshi of House Shamarai, you are to carry the seal of the court until Leeah of House Shamarai, formerly of House Miara is ready to ascend that position, when she does you shall become adviser to the court.”  
She held out a small box and Takeshi looked it, slightly vary of accepting a gift from a fae, but when she gave her word that it would do him no harm he took it and opened the box.  
Inside was a heavy gold signet ring with a seal in the shape of a moon-flower, the seal of House Shamarai.  
Takeshi nodded his acceptance, and understanding.  
“It carries a lot of enchantments, I would appreciate to know what they are.”  
“Protection from theft and trickery, no one but you can remove it from your hand. No one but you can use it to form the seal. It can also form a gateway to the realm of the Fae, to bring you to the great halls where the Seelie Court gathers.”  
“And how does that work?”  
“Stand before a gateway, crafted or natural. State your name and reason for entering the court while pushing your aura through the signet, it will activate the gateway.”  
“By gateway I assume you mean things like doorways, mirrors, surfaces of water, rock-crevices or fairy circles?”  
“Yes.”  
Takeshi listened while the fae explained in more details about the enchantments and how they worked.  
“Would you please give my gratitude to Lord Tamlin?”  
“I will.”  
She brought a small vial of water and a silver plate from her bag and poured the water onto the plate, and with a wave of a hand the water turned into a portal, and when she touched the surface she vanished, and a moment later the plate vanished.

Barely an hour later the fae returned and once again asked to speak with Takeshi and Emelie.  
“My name is Bris, Lord Tamlin has requested that I be your aid.”  
The fae bowed slightly to Takeshi who returned it with a slight nod.  
“ _Bris_ , as in the wind?”  
Emelie piped up when she heard the name of the fae.  
“Indeed I am Lady Lilim.”  
“Please, my name is Emelie, or Em.”  
“As you wish Lady Emelie.”  
Emelie sighed at the title, but nodded.  
After a short conversation about what her duties would be, Bris gave her oath of service before joining the others in Lucifer's marquee, leaving Takeshi and Emelie to their own devices.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

On the 8th day of their courting the first challenge came, and much to everyone's surprise Emelie was the one challenged, not Takeshi.  
When Tamlin decreed that Takeshi was to join the Seelie Court he became a rather desirable match, any child born to him by a member of his house in the time before Leeah took her place in the court would be a noble of the Seelie Court by their own right, and that would make the mother a noble as well.  
When the young demoness stepped up and challenged Emelie as they walked through the marketplace, Takeshi couldn't help a twinge of sorrow at the thought of the life that would soon be lost.  
The demoness was nowhere near strong enough to be of any threat to Emelie.  
The challenge had ended as fast as it started when Emelie whipped out with her tail and wrapped it around the neck of the challenger and with a quick yank she snapped it.

It was the first of many challenges they both had to fight, and Takeshi was relieved that most of the challenges were against him, either challenging his right to court Emelie, trying to win courting rights, or trying to win his position in the Seelie Court.  
Fortunately the latter two didn't require him to kill the challenger, though, a few ended up dead anyway due to how they chose to fight.

After two weeks of daily challenges Takeshi and Emelie simply stopped leaving their fenced off camp, spending most of their time in their own marquee, only leaving to join the others in Lucifer's marquee for the meals.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take?”  
Emelie murmured from her place curled into his chest.  
“ _Hai sweetie_?”  
“It's time isn't it? Your heat, our mating? At the peak of the eclipse?”  
“Ideally it is, but only if you feel you are ready.”  
He pulled her closer and brushed his hand along her wings and over the mashen.  
“Take, I have been ready for this for a very long time.”  
Emelie shifted around a bit until she was straddling him.  
“How about we talk to the others at breakfast, then I release it?”  
Takeshi traced his claws along her sides and hips, enjoying the blast of peppermint that assaulted his nose.  
“Sounds like a plan.”  
“Remember, once my heat starts you will be pulled along, and enter a heat of your own.”  
“I know. Lilith, and Roghan, have both explained it in great detail.”  
She leaned down and began nibbling at the courting-mark, almost instantly sending Takeshi to the edge.

“So, I guess this will be your last breakfast with us as unmated?”  
Lucifer quipped in a teasing tone the moment they entered his marquee to join the others for a morning meal.  
Takeshi and Emelie looked at each other for a moment before nodding with rather telling smiles.  
“I will have the guards set up the wards on your marquee while we eat.”  
Lucifer gave a nod to his ever-present majordomo who quickly bowed and left to inform the guards of their new task.  
The meal was filled with teasing, and more than one suggestion for ways to get the most out of their heat.  
“Do you think you can handle the servants entering your marquee with food?”  
Lucifer wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any issues if his servants entered the warded area.  
“I don't know, it might be better if Logan brings us our food. He is marked by both of us so he shouldn't trigger any reactions as long as he keeps his head down.”  
Takeshi wasn't sure of how much control he would have and he didn't want to risk hurting one of the servants.  
“I think that might be a better idea.”  
Knight agreed.  
“Logan it is then. I will have the servants prepare plenty of food and drinks that will last the day and Logan can bring them in for you.”

With the meal done Takeshi and Emelie prepared to return to their marquee.  
“Wait, you can't run off without giving us a chance to offer our well wishes.”  
The way Lucifer and Lilith smiled set off all kinds of alarms in the back of Takeshi's mind.  
Lucifer walked over to Emelie and pulled her close and with a kiss to the forehead he wished her a pleasurable heat, and a strong mating before turning to Takeshi.  
When Lucifer leaned in toward him Takeshi didn't expect anything different than what had been done to Emelie, so he was stunned for a moment when Lucifer claimed a proper kiss, and he was also surprised to find that there was no hint of challenge, or dominance in it.  
It wasn't the first time the powerful angel had kissed him, but this time was different, there would usually be a teasing dominance in the kiss, a dominance that was now completely gone.  
“You really do taste like _power_.”  
Lucifer teased before giving him the same well wishes that he had offered Emelie.  
There was a brief moment of almost hesitation before Lucifer quickly ducked in and stole another kiss, but this time with a lot more force and just enough dominance to make Takeshi growl in warning and return the kiss, demanding submission.  
“And _passion._..”  
Lucifer laughed as he stepped back.  
Takeshi found himself rather confused when both Roghan and Ylian did the same, kissing Emelie on the forehead and him right on the mouth.

 **“** _ **It is intentional, to help trigger our heat. Roghan and Ylian kissed her on the forehead because they are too closely related to be possible mates, why Lucifer did it I do not know though.”**  
_ The Beast offered a partial explanation for the somewhat odd behavior.  
Takeshi was still rather distracted with the Beast when Lilith did the same, so when she gave his lip a sharp nip he reacted without thinking and returned the kiss, which earned him some laughs and cheers, Emelie joining in the teasing.  
Once they settled down a bit Knight stepped over and gave his own well wishes, and a pair of far more intimate kisses that were returned in kind.  
Munin's kisses were a bit more reserved, but the kiss for Emelie was still quite emotional, and his kiss for Takeshi carried a honesty of sorts, friendship where the others had carried various degrees of desire.  
Something in the way Hugin blushed and hesitated made Takeshi grab his chin and kiss him back before he had a chance to step back and the way Hugin spluttered while wishing him a pleasurable heat and powerful mating made Takeshi grin at him.  
Takeshi felt a surge of anger and disappointment when he noticed Maroue peeking out from the doorway to his section of the camp, but refusing to step over and offer his own well wishes.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Wow! This is intense...”  
Emelie was straddling Takeshi's lap, nipping and kissing his neck while digging sharp nails into the back of his shoulders, the first stirrings of heat lending a frantic, almost desperate nature to her actions.  
“It is...”  
He reached behind her and grabbed the base of her tail, using both hands to make his way to the tip so that he could pull it around in front of her and give it a sharp nip that sent her over the edge.

As the day moved on Takeshi pulled and prodded at Emelie's aura, trying to make her open up more.  
“Em, _love,_ you need to trust me, trust yourself. Let go...”  
“I'm scared...”  
“I know you are. But I trust you. Let go...”  
The feeling when she finally let go and opened up to him was beyond description, even the times when Amanda had done it came nowhere close.

“ _Sweetie_ , you think you could handle joining the others for a while? Watch the rise of the Nine with them?”  
Once Emelie let go of her fears and opened up her aura fully their heat had taken a rather interesting turn as his heat triggered a pseudo-heat in her, making her every bit as desperate as he was, and the following _activities_ had given them a measure of control back.  
“I think so. If I feel like I'm losing control I can always bring us back here. Besides, I don't think they would mind watching...”  
“I have no doubt they would take great joy in watching.”  
He pulled her closer and as he kissed her he could feel the telltale shift in the energies around them that alerted him that she was about to shadow-step.

“Well well, look who decided to join us.”  
Ylian was the first to greet them, no doubt alerted to their shadow-travel by their own abilities.  
“Would be a shame to miss such a rare event, now wouldn't it?”  
Takeshi quipped while trying to tuck Emelie under his chin to keep her from pouncing on Knight.  
“Will you two be okay around others?”  
Lucifer did nothing to hide his concern, or amusement.  
“I think we will be okay. At least as long as no one pushes us.”  
Feeling that Emelie's energies were back under her control he let go and grinned as she instantly pounced on Knight, though in a far more controlled manner than she would have a few moments ago.  
“ _Alpha_ , please keep hold of your mate-to-be, she is ruining my clothes...”  
Knight complained while pointing to the tears in his shirt.  
“Em sweetie, how about you save those claws and fangs for me?”  
Takeshi reached out and snagged the flicking tail and gave it a light tug to bring Emelie's focus back to him and she instantly pounced and within moments they were otherwise occupied.  
“Looks like we will have something interesting to watch while we wait for the Nine to rise.”  
Lilith leaned over in her seat to get a better look at Takeshi and Emelie, offering casual commentary on their technique that rewarded her with the occasional growl, or hiss, depending on whose technique was currently under scrutiny.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Between the constant teasing and intentional pushing of instincts, Takeshi and Emelie were both tethering on the brink of losing control, and they both fund it to be rather enjoyable.  
“Will you be leaving during the eclipse?”  
Ylian's question made them pause, considering their options.  
“Do we have to?”  
Emelie asked after a while.  
“There is nothing that says a mating needs to be done in private. Most simply do it in private to make it easier to stay in control, especially if it is a heat mating.”  
“So no one will mind if we stay, or at least try to?”  
Her voice was almost hopeful.  
“I promise you, no one who matters will mind. Quite the contrary...”  
Ylian teased lightly.  
 _“Take, can we stay? I don't know why, but it feels right...”  
“Of course we can. Though I have a feeling we better be prepared for quite a bit of teasing about it.”  
“Like they don't tease us every chance they get already?”  
“True. A very public mating it is then.”  
_Takeshi gave Emelie a harsh kiss before turning to Ylian.  
“I guess we are staying.”  
“Excellent choice.”  
Ylian watched as Emelie crawled into Takeshi's lap and began to squirm around, trying to find a comfortable position.  
“Would you like me to have some bedding brought here?”  
Ylian was struggling not to laugh at the sight of Emelie trying to soothe the effects of the heat while trying not to knock the chair over.  
“Please do.”  
Emelie nearly begged.

“I do believe this will prove to be the most entertaining feast yet.”  
Lucifer whispered in Lilith's ear.  
“Maybe we should follow their lead? I wouldn't mind a cute little girl with my tail and your wings.”  
She practically purred in reply.  
“As tempting as that sounds, I think such an undertaking might be better suited for my heat.”  
“I guess, but you have to agree, they are rather, inspiring. Aren't they?”  
“Indeed they are.”  
Lucifer tugged gently at the ties that held the top of Lilith's dress together.  
Roghan and Ylian shared a knowing look before shaking their heads at their respective parent's behavior.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

As the nine moons rose and began to slip into alignment for the eclipse the light slowly shifted and began to affect the aura of those present, soothing and relaxing, making them unfurl and flow with the flow of the light.  
Takeshi however was struggling against it, trying to maintain the control over his aura as the light somehow counteracted the temporary seal he had placed before leaving the Obsidian Halls.  
“Don't worry Takeshi, my sitting area is well warded, no one outside will be adversely affected by us. My own energies are far too much for most demons to handle, as are Lucifer's and the eclipse will bring out all of our auras.”  
Lilith explained, trying to calm him down a bit.  
“I promise, it's safe for you to release your aura, no one will be hurt. The guards and servants know not to enter the area once the alignment for the eclipse starts. Only a few of the elder servants will enter, but they are able to withstand our energies.”  
Her words made Takeshi relax a bit, but he was still fighting the release of his aura.  
“Even if the wards were to fail, only the strongest demons are allowed this close to the focal-point. Demons strong enough to handle your energies.”  
“Focal point?”  
“Indeed, the alignment of the moons causes a focal point to form here on the beach.”  
“That focal point wouldn't happen to be where you moved our bedding with such insistence?”  
“Now, what makes you think that?”  
Lilith's impish grin confirmed Takeshi's guess.

“Alright, enough. _Stop worrying and let your aura go_.”  
Takeshi felt the familiar power of suggestion wash over him and he gave Lilith a slight glare as he let go of his aura.  
“Using _suggestion_? That's not really fair is it?”  
“Not in the least, but well worth it.”  
Lilith quipped.  
“You know, your aura has a nice feel to it when you are not restraining it.”  
She was pulling and prodding at his aura as it unfurled and once it was relaxed she grabbed him by the hips, spun him around and gave him a push toward where Emelie was resting.  
“Now go bathe your mate-to-be in that fire of yours.”  
He could feel a slight burn as her claws dug in when she slapped his ass to get him moving, no doubt giving him a hefty dose of the same lust inducing venom that Emelie had developed after her ascension.  
“You do know I can easily counteract that stuff, right?”  
He tossed over his shoulder as he continued to walk toward Emelie.  
“I know, but you won't. You will take it all out on our little Em.”  
Takeshi just shook his head with a grin at her words, she was right after all.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

When the nine moons aligned fully there was a pulse of energy across the lands and moments later that energy shifted, and pulsed again as the moons went into full eclipse.  
The full eclipse would last for one hour, then it would all slowly return to normal over the following 50 days.  
As the second pulse passed Takeshi began to pull at Emelie's aura.  
“It's time love.”  
She nodded and turned to face him, opening herself to him as he did to her.  
Takeshi leaned in and gave the courting-mark a gentle nip, using it as a conduit to begin to channel his power into her and when he pulled back slightly she did the same.  
Emelie straddled his lap and leaned into his chest as they pulled their unleashed power in around them and focused it into the bond formed by the courting-marks.

“Now that is a beautiful sight.”  
Roghan whispered as he looked at the way Takeshi's and Emelie's auras blended, his eyes the solid silver of a true seer.  
“It is. Makes me feel a bit sorry for those that do not possess the sight.”  
Lucifer's eyes were the same solid silver as those of his son.  
“It is quite beautiful for the rest of us as well.”  
Ylian was just as mesmerized by the sight as the seers of the group.  
Takeshi's red aura was swirling and mixing with the purple of Emelie's, building up around them like a whirlwind, slowly becoming more and more entwined until they could no longer tell the energies apart.

When Emelie looked up at Takeshi her emotions were written plainly on her face, tears flowing freely down her cheeks and Takeshi could feel that he was in the same condition, somehow the light from the eclipse tore down all defenses, mental, spiritual and emotional.  
He could feel the sum of her flowing through him, and he could tell that she was feeling him in the same way.  
He couldn't really tell how long time had passed when the flow of energy between them suddenly leveled out and found a balance of sorts.  
Emelie's energy was blanketed under his own, but it was willingly, she allowed his power to cover and guide hers, accepting him as the dominant one in the mating.  
Though he could feel the occasional burst of energy breaking through, a clear sign of her personality and independent nature and he did nothing to prevent it, allowing her energy to flow freely, merely letting his energy flow with hers, protecting it and supporting it.

As their energies settled they both knew it was time and reaching for the innermost core of each other's soul they began to form the bond.  
There was a moment of silence when the threads of energy connected and they could feel the sum of their existence bleed together.  
As he kissed her he poured his very essence into her, past, present and future, all that he had been, all that he currently was, and all that he could become focused into a single feeling and as he did he could feel her answer in kind.  
 _“Soulmate...?”_  
Emelie's presence carried amazement, and hesitation as the thin strands of energy began to twist around each other to form the ultimate bond, the mating bond.  
 _“My precious soulmate!”_  
Takeshi echoed back at her, but with a deep rooted certainty and a joy unlike anything he had ever felt before.  
 _“Soulmate! Mine!”_  
Emelie's hesitation was gone and she echoed Takeshi's joy back at him along with a wicked desire and teasing humor that matched his own..  
A few moments later they both felt the bond snap into place, and as it did their auras exploded outward, causing ripples to form on the lake and as it passed over those gathered to watch the eclipse, cheering and whistling erupted, celebrating the formation of a mating bond between soulmates.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_The Eclipse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

When Takeshi and Emelie came down from the high of their mating the eclipse had ended and they found themselves surrounded by the others who were looking at them and prodding their energies with avid curiosity.  
Takeshi flared his aura and gave them a mock growl which made them back up and return to the sitting area, but they were laughing and teasing as they did.  
They didn't stay away for long though, and when they returned they all carried trays of treats, and small trinkets, symbolic gifts to give the newly mated pair good fortune.  
Much to Takeshi's frustration the giving of the gifts was very similar to how they had offered their well wishes before the heat started, complete with kisses, and wandering hands.  
“You still taste the same. Just as nice, only stronger...”  
Lucifer teased with a slight hint of surprise, he obviously expected a change.  
Still buzzing with the high of the mating, and the effects of his heat Takeshi couldn't resist a bit of payback, snaking his hands behind Lucifer he placed one hand on his mashed and the other behind his head and stole a kiss for himself, using sharp fangs to steal a drop of blood.  
“You don't taste bad yourself.”  
Takeshi quipped when he pulled back, he had of course been well aware of that, but he had never mentioned it before, well aware how important such things were to demons.  
“Your mate tastes better though.”  
Unlike the previous time Lucifer had given Emelie a proper kiss this time.  
“That she does.”  
Takeshi agreed with a grin before pouncing at Emelie and kissing her, much to the others' amusement.

When they came back up for breath the others were waiting with their gifts and there was quite a bit of teasing going around, Takeshi and Emelie giving as good as they got, but unlike the previous time the kisses didn't hold the same heat, instead they were familiar, friendly, almost calming.  
“Oh, no you don't little raven. Come here.”  
Takeshi slowly stalked toward Hugin, holding out his hand and beckoning him to come closer.  
After what Takeshi had done the previous time the young guard was hesitant and had tried to get away with kissing Takeshi on the forehead, but in his current mood Takeshi wouldn't have any of it.  
“If you don't stop I will have to find a way to punish you...”  
The tone in Takeshi's voice made Hugin visibly shiver, every feather of his wings trembling with a mix of excitement and a hint of fear.  
“I think you better obey, little brother.”  
Munin stepped in behind Hugin, blocking his brothers escape and within moments Takeshi was upon them, bringing his hand to Hugin's mashen Takeshi halted any further attempts to escape as Hugin leaned into the gentle touch.  
“That's it my beautiful little raven.”  
Takeshi leaned in and claimed his kiss, keeping it teasingly soft.  
After a few moments Takeshi could feel a slight answer, but it was hesitant, a mix of desire and confusion, but when he felt a trickle of fear, he pulled back and released Hugin with a ruffle of the small feathers at the base of his wings.  
As he stepped away Takeshi could hear Hugin's confused chirping, not really words as much as a display of emotions.  
Takeshi felt a pang of sorrow at the confusion and fear that was relayed by Hugin's chirps but it soon gave way to relief and gratitude as Munin's voice joined in and began to soothe his brother.  
 _“Easy brother, he can feel your fear and you know what that does to him...”  
“But...”  
“No, just let it go for now brother. We will have a lot of work to do.”  
_

If Takeshi had known just how right Munin would be, he would have asked Emelie to bring them to their marquee and put up every seal he knew.

 


	4. New Life

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Take, Em. Another group has arrived.”  
Munin called from the doorway of the marquee and his words were greeted by groans.  
For the past days there had been a constant stream of guests coming to give Takeshi and Emelie the traditional _Moira.  
_Moira loosely translated to _The first gift_ , or _Fortuitous gift_ , a token gift given to those newly mated for good fortune.  
Apparently it was believed that giving a _moira_ to a soulmated pair would give the one one who gave it good fortune as well, and would help attract their own soulmate to them.  
Though, Takeshi could feel that most of those visiting were just looking for an opportunity to weasel themselves closer to him and Emelie, trying to earn their favor.  
Emelie had picked up on the same feeling so they had decided to only meet with young children, those with pure intent, carrying symbolic gifts.  
Little handmade tokens, flowers from the plains around them, a shell or a shimmering stone from the beach, some even gifted them with small demonic animals that they had caught.  
At first they had refused to meet with any of the visitors, but the sight of a pair of sisters struggling with one of the flying octopus creatures of the plains had reminded them of Alice and Anne and they decided that they would meet with the children who came carrying gifts of their own.  


 

.·:*¨¨*:·. Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


“Come here girls.”  
Takeshi smiled as they pulled and struggled to keep the creature from floating away.  
When they got closer Emelie noted that it was a pregnant female and she silently pointed that out to Takeshi.  
“Girls, don't you think it would be better to let her fly free and have her babies in the plains where they belong?”  
Emelie spoke softly when the girls stopped in front of her and Takeshi.  
“We wanted to catch a baby for you, but they are like super hard to catch so we caught her instead. Then you can let her go later.”  
“Well, that is clever thinking. You think like a hunter. But her babies won't be safe like that.”  
The two girls ducked their heads and their wings fell, showing their remorse for having endangered the clutch of babies.  
“We don't have another gift...”  
“Oh don't worry about that.”  
Emelie tried to soothe them but they were both inconsolable but after a few moments Takeshi got an idea.  


“Why don't you girls try asking her if you can have a few of her eggs? Then we can watch over them until they hatch.”  
“But she can't speak...”  
“Use your auras, reach out for her, let her feel what you want.”  
By now the parents of the girls were starting to look rather concerned and as they tried to come closer Hugin and Munin stepped in.  
“Worry not, your young ones are perfectly safe. Our masters both have a great love and care for children.”  
It took a few minutes, but the girls managed to relay what they wanted to the creature and the creature granted them their wish by carefully expelling four of her eggs from her gas-filled body.  
Takeshi carefully took the eggs as they were expelled and handed two of them to Emelie before giving the girls one each.  
“You girls take really good care of, and protect, those eggs and I'm sure they will hatch into adorable little...”  
Takeshi paused for a moment and looked at the floating creature.  
“Well, adorable little whatever they are supposed to be.”  
The last part had the girls giggling while Emelie ushered them back to their parents.  


.·:*¨¨*:·. End Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


 

“Any children for us to meet with?”  
Emelie sighed as she shifted slightly pushing Knight's hand away from her hip so that she could shift her position on top of Takeshi.  
“Yes, five of them.”  
A huffing sigh from beneath her told them that Takeshi would rather stay where he was and the muttering from Knight made it quite clear that he agreed.  
“Take, let go of my tail and get dressed.”  
Emelie scolded lightly when Takeshi grabbed hold of her tail and began pulling her back toward the bed.  
“And what if I don't feel like letting go?”  
“You better not be planning on greeting those kids wearing nothing but a smile.”  
“They are demons, I'm sure they won't mind.”  
With another tug on her tail he pulled her back into his lap and silenced her objections with a kiss.  
By the time Takeshi let go of her Knight and Munin were waiting with a pair of elaborate robes for them and quickly helped them dress, all while Takeshi refused to let go of Emelie's tail.  


While they spoke with the children and accepted the gifts Takeshi noticed that another group arrived, a handful of adults and a little girl holding a very expensive looking jewelry box.  
When Hugin took the girl to the side Takeshi focused a part of his attention on them to listen in on the conversation.  
“That's a beautiful box, did you pick it out?”  
“No, daddy picked it.”  
“Did you have something else you wanted to give them?”  
“Mhm, but daddy said it was no good. That they wouldn't like some _piece of garbage off the ground_...”  
The sadness and disappointment was obvious in her voice.  
“What was is you had for them?”  
Hugin encouraged her.  
“This...”  
She reached into a hidden pocket and pulled out a long, spiral seashell, almost as long as her lower arm.  
It was transparent like glass with several bands of color along the spiral, alternating between red and purple.  
“Why did you pick this one?”  
“The colors makes it look like their powers.”  
“You're right, it does look like them. Did you feel them as well?”  
“Mhm, they felt really nice.”  
“Why don't you leave that box here and go give them that beautiful shell? I'm sure they will love it.”  
“Okay!”  
She practically chirped before skipping toward the other children.  
When Takeshi and Emelie thanked her for the beautiful gift she was beaming at them.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Takeshi sighed when the caravan master brought him another marker, indicating that they had another section loaded with items within the behemoth tortoise.  
It was their sixth, not counting the items that had been ordered from the various vendors to be delivered at the Obsidian Palace, one held the various items that they had bought at the market, one held the items that Seia and her children had brought with them, the others held the various moira gifts they had received.  
On top of it all Lucifer had told him that a steady stream of gifts had been delivered to the palace as well, it seemed like he would have to purchase an entire warehouse, and learn more about teleportation runes, ideally finding runes that would allow transporting between the human realm and the demon realm.   
“You have become a rather wealthy man during your stay here.”  
Ylian brushed against his back, still in their incorporeal shadow form.  
“I already was before coming here. And I place greater value on the trinkets the children gifted us with, than the treasures their parents tried to purchase us with.”  
“I know you do. But having a substantial wealth to your name might become useful when it comes to caring for Seia and her children.”  
“Part of it will be for the benefit of our spawn as well. I know you have rather large wealth yourself, but I insist.”  
“You have done more than enough. If it wasn't for your aid I would not be carrying these. They are strong and I have no doubt it will be a successful spawning. I **will** become a true pana.”  
“And I will stand proudly at your side as para. I know it's not expected among your kind for a para to stick around after conception. But I will not abandon my children, or their pana.”  
Takeshi felt the familiar chilling sensation as Ylian passed right through him and appeared in front of him.  
The old shadeling stayed in the incorporeal shadow form in order to conserve power, to give as much as possible to the growing spawn and Takeshi assisted as much as he could, allowing his aura to flow through Ylian and gently brush against the tiny life-flames within, letting them draw as much as they wanted.  
Allowing himself to fall into the ebb and flow of energy Takeshi though back on those three days nearly two weeks ago.  


 

.·:*¨¨*:·. Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


“Ylian, may I have a moment of your time?”  
Takeshi extracted himself from Emelie while Knight had her distracted.  
“Of course.”  
They walked behind one of the divider screens for a measure of privacy.  
“I have been thinking about my promise to aid you in becoming pana. And I have a question that might be a bit, well, intimate.”  
“Nothing short of a true mating would be more intimate than the transfer between pana and para. Ask your question.”  
“I was wondering if it would improve your chances of a successful spawning if we did this while I am still under the influence of my heat.”  
“But, your heat should have ended by now?”  
Ylian sounded rather confused.  
“Normally it would have, but the instinct to procreate is keeping my heat active, though a slow burn that is easy to hide.”  
“So she still struggles with her fears...”  
“She probably will for a long time. But I can, and will, wait for her, as long as it takes.”  
“You are right though, if you are still in heat, especially if it is prolonged by a breeding fever it should greatly increase the chances for a successful spawning. Though, is Em going to be okay with that? Even if she has no conscious desire to breed her instincts might rebel, you are quite desirable as a breeding partner, and you are her soulmate.”.”  
“She is fine with it. She has actually been pestering me to find a way to end my heat since it's pulling at hers, prolonging hers as well.”  
They agreed that they might as well get it over with as soon as possible, and with that they re-joined the others.  


“Em, will you be okay with only Logan for a while?”  
“I should be. If not I will ask our little ravens for a hand. Just don't stay away for too long, or I might end up trying to kill Lucifer.”  
While Takeshi laughed at Emelie's complaints about Lucifer's frequent propositions, Hugin and Munin quickly assured them that they would gladly help if needed.  
“Then I will go with Ylian and return once yi is carrying. With some luck that will also allow my heat to end, and yours with it.”  
“About time, it's driving me insane!”  
“Really? And here I thought you were enjoying yourself...”  
Takeshi quipped at her which earned him a frustrated hiss.  
“There is such a thing as _För mycket av det goda_ you know.”  
“Too much of a good thing? Impossible!”  
He teased in return.  
“You are the one who is impossible! Now run off and make me some cousins!”  
“ _Hai hai, sweetie._ ”  
A huff was the only reply she offered as she shooed him out of the marquee while Ylian followed them with a telling smile.  


The rest of the day had been spent in Ylian's small marquee, allowing their energies to synchronize, and talking about some of the finer details of what needed to be done.  
Shadelings didn't have sexes so their reproductions was different, any shadeling could become both pana, the one to carry, and para, the one who gives, their equivalent of mother and father.  
They were also able to become pana with the help of someone of another species, and it didn't matter if the para was male or female, or neither, a shadeling was even able to become pana on their own.  
Becoming pana without a para carried a high risk though, the offspring would be weaker and few survived long enough to transition from spawns into proper shadelings.  
The process was different as well, sex wasn't really needed, instead there was a transfer of energy, the pana would prepare by forming a chamber of sorts within their true, incorporeal, form.  
Within that chamber they would collect energy and the para would assist by feeding their energy into it as well, and when enough energy was gathered a catalyst was added.  
There were many ways for a shadeling to create the catalyst needed, and the potency of the catalyst depended on the method.  
The potency of the catalyst determined how much energy it could bind into a new form, a more potent catalyst gave fewer, but stronger spawns, and the most potent catalyst of all was a strong sexual release.  
Once the catalyst had been released the pana would return to their true form and avoid taking a corporeal form or do anything that drained their energies in order to allow their growing spawns as much energy as possible to feed of.  
Most para would leave once the catalyst had been activated, but Takeshi made it clear to Ylian that he would assist in feeding the growing spawns.  


Takeshi was carefully wrapping Ylian in his power, pushing it into them while trailing teasing kisses along their neck when he felt them shift their form slightly, taking on a more female appearance.  
“You don't need to change your form on my behalf. I don't care if you appear more male, more female, or neither. Just keep the form you are most comfortable with.”  
“I know, but certain activities are easier, and more enjoyable, if I wear a more compatible form.”  
Takeshi chuckled at Ylian's answer and began to trace the new curves with his claws, enjoying the shiver he managed to bring out.  


Takeshi found himself struggling to keep his flow of energy even with Ylian's, but it was becoming harder and harder to suppress it to keep an even flow and a spike could disturb the balance needed.  
“Can you handle a higher flow? I'm not sure I will be able to keep my power stable like this.”  
“You are strong, but not strong enough to overwhelm me, not yet at least. Just, step it up gradually please, the energy is so fragile at this stage.”  
“Of course.”  
Takeshi carefully let go of his energy and when it flowed freely he breathed a deep sigh of relief.  
“You know, your energy is rather comfortable when you are relaxed. Warm, protective, even nurturing.”  
Ylian was leaning back into Takeshi's chest, focused on channeling their combined power into the chamber within that would soon hold the fragile new lives.  
“And when I'm not relaxed?”  
“Sharp, and a bit too hot for someone like me to be comfortable.”  
“Do all shadelings have cold energies like you?”  
Takeshi decided to try and get a few answers while he waited for Ylian's need for energy to be sated.  
“We do, it's our nature. Just look at Em, a succubus would normally be hot, like fire, the heat of passion and desire. But she has inherited so much from my father, her shadow heritage shining through in the crisp chill of her aura.”  
They spent several hours just talking and channeling energy, but when the sun began to rise Ylian turned slightly and told Takeshi that it was done, that all they needed now was the catalyst.  


“Being this submissive doesn't suit you.”  
Takeshi complained slightly as he nipped at Ylian's neck.  
To feel Ylian force their energies into submission felt strange, Takeshi knew why they did it but it gave him a feeling of wrongness that was ruining his mood.  
“You know, I quite enjoy a spirited partner. Or do you believe that Em, or Logan, submit easily?”  
“They are pack, I'm not.”  
“Don't worry, my Beast can tell if someone is trying to challenge me or claim dominance. The lack of submission alone won't trigger any reaction. It has grown to enjoy being pushed just as much as I do.”  
“Why am I not surprised.”  
Ylian laughed and slowly allowed their power to rise, to tease and mock challenge, and when they pushed clawed hands against Takeshi's chest he rolled to the side, pulling Ylian along until they were straddling him.  
When Ylian leaned in toward Takeshi's throat he leaned his head back slightly, giving them access to his neck and throat.  
He could feel the burn of his heat rise and he encouraged it, letting the thrill of walking the edge light the fire.  
“I think this just got very interesting.”  
Ylian whispered against Takeshi's neck before giving him a nip with sharp fangs, earning them a groan as Takeshi's heat returned with full force.  
Teasing laughter was replaced by a yelp and a moaning sigh as Takeshi dug his claws into Ylian's hips and pulled them down sharply.  


As they reached their peak their auras merged in preparation for the catalyst, and Takeshi realized that Ylian had been hiding something from them, deceiving not only them but probably almost everyone they ever met, Ylian, was in fact a beta, not an alpha.  
Takeshi didn't fully understand why a powerful beta would pretend to be an alpha, but he didn't really care why.  
“Don't worry, your secret is safe with me.”  
Takeshi's whispered words instantly made Ylian relax and as they did they fell into the abyss, pulling Takeshi along.  


“Only four, I don't think I have ever heard of anyone carrying such a small clutch. But they are strong, stronger than I had dared to hope.”  
Ylian carefully used a trickle of energy to probe the chamber that held the budding life.  
“Four life-flames, strong and stable.”  
Takeshi agreed, allowing his energy to gently brush against them and when a tiny lick of power answered and latched onto his aura, drawing power from it his smile turned into a grin.  
“Shadelings rarely carry less than twenty, and those that do usually do so because they had very little energy to start with. We had so much power, I was sure I would be carrying an unusually large clutch. But your heat, your raw instinct and desire to procreate gave the catalyst a boost.”  
There was worry, a hint of fear, in Ylian's tone, no doubt concerned that none of the young would live long enough to mature fully.  
Ylian had explained before that shadelings were born in a larval form of sorts, as lesser shadows and only the strongest survived long enough to mature into shadelings.  
It was not uncommon for a shadeling pana to carry a clutch of 30 to 50 and only have one or two become shadelings.  
“They are stronger than a normal spawn, right?”  
“They are. Much stronger.”  
“Then I wouldn't worry so much. Also, unlike most pana you will have their para here to feed them even more power.”  
The sensation of Ylian's incorporeal form leaning against him was a strange one, but Takeshi was sure he would get used to it.  


.·:*¨¨*:·. End Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


 

“I find myself longing for the day these are ready to leave the chamber.”  
Ylian sighed and shifted slightly, brushing a tendril of power against the tiny lives within.  
“They joy of pregnancy getting old already? Image being human then and carry for 9 months.”  
Takeshi teased with a smile.  
“I don't mind carrying them, I just miss my corporeal form. I don't think it would harm them if I did retake it, but I don't want to take the risk.”  
“Oh, any particular reason why you miss it so much?”  
Takeshi's aura brushed against Ylian's in a rather suggestive way as he spoke.  
“I can see why your pack insists on calling you impossible, and horrible... But yes, that is one of the reasons.”  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Are you sure you're good to travel?”  
“Oh, would you stop being such a worrywart. I'm just a bit low on energy from the drain and the lack of proper food.”  
Ylian sighed and tried to divert Takeshi's attention back to packing up their camp.  
“You did say that you think they are about ready to leave the spawning-chamber. Maybe we should stay here until they have?”  
“Don't worry, it's not like a human birthing, there's no risk involved. And they will remain in their current form for a while after they leave, their corporeal form will be like a marble, protecting them.”  
Ylian explained, adding a bit more detail than last time they had spoken of it.  
“So you are sure then?”  
“Yes, I'm sure. Now go fuzz over something else will you?”  
Ylian sighed before nailing Hugin and Munin with a glare to try to silence their amused chirping.  
Ylian enjoyed that Takeshi cared, and worried about their spawn, but he could become a bit much sometimes, a real mother-hen, though, that part of him was one of the things that had drawn them to him as a para.  
Turning their focus inward Ylian let their power brush against the four little ones and smiled as they responded in an almost playful way, showing that they were ready to be born.  


“Take, could you carry this out to the wagon please?”  
Emelie pointed toward one of the large chests filled with clothes.  
They would pack the wagon and bring it to the edge of the camp where the caravan master would see to that it was packed into the behemoth tortoise.  
Much to Takeshi's relief it was the final chest, once it had been removed from the marquee it was time to take it down and prepare it to be loaded onto the _desert-tank_.  
He was securing the chest when Emelie tapped his shoulder with her tail, hands occupied with a stack of baskets and lids.  
“Take, when you are done loading those chests onto the wagon could you grab Logan and take a few of those empty amphorae over there and join us at the beach?”  
“Of course sweetie.”  
Takeshi glanced toward the waterline where Seia's children were combing through the sand under Ylian's watchful eye, though, as usual Arath was just sitting to the side, pretending to be his sisters' keeper.  
Takeshi had very little hope for the boy, but he refused to just give up.  


Arath had been refusing to pack his own things, expecting that his mother, sisters or one of the female servants or guards to do it.  
He hadn't packed his thing until Takeshi had ordered that none of his house would do it, and Lucifer ordered that none of the guards or servants were allowed to help.  
Before that Arath had been speaking to the others from the Blue Sands, happily telling them that Takeshi had not bedded Seia, suggesting that she had been found unworthy, something that would make her _tharas_ in their eyes and place her in quite a bit of danger.  
In the end there had been no choice than for Takeshi to consummate the bond with her, the others of her people would be able to tell if he didn't, but it had been one of the hardest things he had ever done.  
Not because he found her unworthy or anything like that, but because she didn't actually want him, she only did it out of necessity and in the end it had taken Emelie's powers for him to be able to do what needed to be done.  
The taint of fear in Seia's aura and scent had made it near impossible for him to _perform_ , and even when smothered in Emelie's peppermint and dosed by her venom it had been a struggle.  
For a moment he found himself thinking back on the conversation he had shared with her afterward.  


 

.·:*¨¨*:·. Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


“You are an honorable male. I am sorry....”  
Seia's aura was even more submissive than usual, something that made Takeshi's instinct rebel.  
“Ssh, don't apologize. I'm the one who should be apologizing for not being able to find a way around this. No one should ever need to do something like this.”  
“It is the way of my people.”  
“House Miara of the Blue Sands is no more. You, and your children are House Shamarai of the Silver Lakes now. You are no longer subject to their ways.”  
“I know, but it will take time to get used to it, to change how I have been raised to be.”  
“Good thing then, that time is something we have plenty of.”  


.·:*¨¨*:·. End Flashback .·:*¨¨*:·.  


 

Takeshi grabbed a pair of the amphorae and began to walk toward the water, thinking about his house and all that came with it.  


There had been quite a bit of debate about what origin Takeshi's house would claim, since Takeshi's origin wasn't from within the demon-realm.  
He could have claimed the Obsidian Halls as his origin since Lucifer was the one that had granted him his house, but somehow it didn't feel right and when Lilith offered to give him the Silver Lakes, a neutral territory for all demons, as his origin he accepted.  
Emelie had the choice between the Obsidian Halls or the Black Mountain from Maroue, or the Eternal Night from Lilith and she had chosen the latter for her House Miri.  
And since Emelie submitted to him during their mating their combined house _Shamarai Miri_ would claim the Silver Lakes as its origin.  


“Welcome to the treasure hunt.”  
Ylian greeted with a tired smile, as long as they were in their incorporeal form and carrying they were unable to eat or drink normally, having to feed solely on energy, something that left them rather exhausted.  
Normally a shadeling in their incorporeal form would envelop and absorb their prey, but while carrying Ylian couldn't do that as that would cause them to absorb the spawns as well.  
“I hope they kids haven't been too much trouble.”  
Takeshi paused for a moment to set down his burden before sitting down next to Ylian, releasing some of his aura to feed both Ylian and their little clutch.  
“Not at all, the girls are very well behaved, and they are adjusting fine to their newfound freedom. Toben doesn't fuss much and Arath is his usual self.”  
The last part was Ylian's diplomatic way of saying that Arath had been behaving like a stuck-up brat as usual.  
“It's good to finally see them playing around and having fun.”  
“It is. You should join them.”  
“I will once our little ones here stop trying to drain me dry. You make sure to take your fill as well.”  
“It's okay, Roghan will give me what I need before we set out. Save your power for our spawn, you know they won't accept any but ours.”  
Takeshi was grateful that the others had decided to help with giving Ylian the energy they needed, even Lucifer and Lilith had given freely, if he had to do it himself he would probably be very drained by now.  
While the spawn fed off his energy he watched the children collect shells on the beach and place them in the baskets that Emelie had brought.  
Emelie liked the glass-like shells and wanted to bring plenty of them with them back, and while he watched she shoveled the blue and green crystal sand into one of the lids and used it as a sieve, collecting the fine sand on top of a piece of cloth before packing it into a tightly woven basket.  


“Ah, done feeding my little cousins?”  
Emelie looked up from the basket filled with shells when he placed the amphorae in the sand next to her.  
“For now, they are hungry little rascals.”  
“That's good, means they will be strong.”  
“That they are. Now, anything else you need me to do?”  
"Yeah, fill those with water from the lake and drop one of these in before sealing them up.”  
She handed him a small crystal, similar to the ones used to create the stasis field they used to keep food from spoiling, it would keep the water fresh and prevent it from going stale or becoming tainted.  
“As you wish my Lady.”  
Takeshi teased with a bow and a quick step to the side to avoid her tail before picking up the amphorae and heading toward the water.  
“ _But you_ _ **are**_ _my Lady. Most precious of all treasures. My soulmate.”_  
_“And you, my soulmate, should know better than trying to flatter me.”_  
As much as she tried she couldn't hide the pleased joy from his words, the bond transmitting them as clearly as it did her words and in return she felt his content amusement.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


It was the third day of their return trip when Takeshi felt sharp fluctuations in Ylian's aura from within Lucifer's palanquin, signaling that they were about to birth their spawn.  
Ylian shared the warded palanquin with Lucifer and Lilith in order to conserve their energy and have access to plenty of energy to feed off and Takeshi joined them every few hours to allow the spawn to feed from him.  
“Go. Be with yi.”  
Emelie gave Takeshi's qilin a slight nudge toward the ox beasts that carried the palanquin.  
“May I enter?”  
Takeshi called with slight hesitation, unsure what rules tradition dictated for births.  
“Of course, come.”  
Ylian's voice was slightly strained and Lucifer was the one to open the door of the palanquin to let Takeshi in.  
Once inside Takeshi found Ylian resting on a pile of pillows with Lilith at their side, gently feeding them energy from her vast reserves.  
“Come, let them feel you while yi prepares to expel them from the chamber.”  
Lilith nodded toward the pillows on Ylian's other side.  
Takeshi joined them and allowed his energy to brush over Ylian and their spawns.  


“Take, would you stop being so antsy. I assure you there is no discomfort.”  
Ylian scolded gently as they prepared to bring out the first of their spawns.  
“I know. But it's still a rather disconcerting sight to see you with your hands inside your body like this.”  
“I guess it would be for someone who is used to always being corporeal.”  
Takeshi watched as Ylian carefully manipulated the small balls of energy within, gently urging one of them closer to the surface.  
“Hold out your hand and coat it with your power.”  
Ylian instructed and Takeshi did as he was told, then suddenly Ylian closed their hand around one of the spawns and pulled it out, gently placing it into Takeshi's waiting hand.  
He was surprised at the weight of it, although the size of a quail egg it was heavy, as if it was made from solid platinum and it was cold like ice but very clearly alive as tiny wisps of shadowy energy explored his own energy.  
After a while it seemed to recognize him and the egg-shape unfurled into a small cloud of shadow energy that slowly enveloped his hand before returning to it's smaller, corporeal form.  
When Ylian held out their hand with the next spawn Lilith held out a small box with soft padding and four small indents that was obviously made to house the spawns in their egg form.  
Takeshi carefully placed the one he was holding into one of the indents before taking the next one from Ylian's hand and soon it unfurled as well, tasting his power, getting to know him and this time he placed it into the box once it resumed its egg form and waited for Ylian to extract the next one.  


Once all four spawns had been placed into the box Lilith held it out to Ylian who had just retaken corporeal form.  
“Four strong spawns. Take pride in your young, pana.”  
Ylian picked them up one by one, repeating the greeting, and bonding process that Takeshi had just gone through.  
“Thank you for gifting me with these.”  
Ylian reached for Takeshi, pulled him closer and gave him a kiss that relayed all of their emotion.  
“Em is going to be pestering you to meet them as soon as possible you know.”  
“I know, but she will have to wait until they mature a bit more, but she should be able to meet them before we arrive.”  
Ylian closed the lid of the small box and hid it away in their clothes.  
“But right now, all I want is some proper food.”  
The demand brought on some knowing chuckles and shortly after several trays of food was brought in while Takeshi left to find fresh prey to bring back to Ylian to allow them to replenish what they had lost.  


When Takeshi returned to the caravan with his catch they had stopped for the night so he brought the massive buffalo beast to the fires where his pack and the others were resting.  
He quickly released the travois from the harness of the pack-beast and handed the reins to one of the servants, another servant came and took the reins of his qilin, they would bring them to the stable master and see to that they were taken care of.  
“A little snack for our new pana.”  
Takeshi teased lightly, but the hungry gleam in Ylian's eyes as they approached made him step away from his prey and as they walked past him, Ylian handed Takeshi the box that held their young.  
They prowled around the beast, assessing it before abandoning their usual humanoid form in favor of a shapeless blob, enveloping the beast and when they began to reform there was no trace of it, not even skin or bones remained.  
“Mmm, that's better.”  
Ylian licked their lips and focused back on Takeshi.  
“You think you could catch me something alive next?”  
Ylian was nearly purring at him.  
“Fresh blood and flaring life-force?”  
He held out the small rectangular to Ylian who took it and placed it back in its hidden fold.  
“Exactly...”  
“Think you can manage until tomorrow without eating someone? I could use a bit of rest.”  
“Cheeky...”  
Ylian huffed at him with a soft smile.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


The news of the birthing had obviously spread fast as a steady stream of demons came by to congratulate Ylian on a successful spawning, offering gifts, and various treats.  
A sudden spike of agitation from Ylian made Takeshi stop and direct his mount toward them, once there he found Ylian baring their fangs against another shadeling while curling around the box with their young, obviously not wanting the other anywhere close.  
“I do believe that means you should leave.”  
Takeshi placed himself between the newcomer and Ylian.  
The shadeling only glanced at him with a scoff before trying to move past him, something that caused a slight trickle of fear in Ylian's aura.  
The newcomer was no match in power under normal circumstances, but Ylian was still weakened and the young were sensitive to sudden bursts of power.  
“I insist.”  
Takeshi placed his hand on the hilt of his hunting blade in warning.  
“That little toy of yours can't harm me.”  
The shadeling sneered and tried to move closer again, only to stop again when a heavy blade was placed against its neck.  
“Perhaps not, but this one will if you do not leave.”  
Knight had called out his armor, as well as his steeds barding and made for a rather intimidating image.  
_“Draw Glenys, a regular blade can't touch it.”_  
Knight urged him and he could feel Glenys respond within, letting him know that she would gladly be drawn to keep the stranger at bay.  
Thankfully it was never needed as a black crystal blade joined Knight's silver one on the opposite side of the shadelings neck.  
“I suggest you do as the para asks.”  
Lucifer's voice held a deadly chill and the shadeling left in a hurry.  


Ylian sagged slightly as the tension fled them, as much as they tried to hide being a beta they had to admit that it felt very good to have three strong alpha's stepping in to protect them and their spawn.  
“Ylian, what was that all about?”  
Takeshi's question was answered by an uncomfortable silence as Ylian checked on their young.  
“Something about yi had you really upset. Please, tell me why.”  
Ylian looked at him with a deep sigh.  
“Shadelings are cannibals. The stronger of us will consume our enemies and absorb their power. But there are weaker shadelings, and cowards, who act without honor. They will attack stronger pana while they are still week from the spawning, even if they are too weak to absorb the pana. Instead they will steal the immature spawn and absorb them to increase their own power.”  
Ylian's aura was heavy with revulsion and Takeshi could feel the spawns becoming increasingly distraught by their pana's agitated energy.  
“Don't you think you should have told me about that? That there might come shadelings wanting to kill, to eat, our babies?”  
Takeshi was struggling to keep his mood from showing in his aura, not wanting to upset the little ones any further, but the fear mixed with anger and a pained sadness was hard to contain, evident by the tears flowing down his face.  
“I didn't think anyone would have the gall to try something like that in the middle of the caravan, among friends and guards.”  
The revulsion was slowly being replaced by tendrils of shame and guilt.  
“You should have told me anyway. I'm not a shadeling, I don't know your ways and my Beast only knows so much.”  
“You're right, I'm sorry.”  
Ylian gently pulled Takeshi closer and kissed him, allowing both of them to calm down.  
Ylian's aura had settled down again and they were focusing it on their spawns, trying to calm them and Takeshi added his own power to the mix, focusing on the part of him that was alpha, protector.  


“Logan, watch over them while I hunt please.”  
After a long conversation with Ylian they had all agreed that they would focus on getting them back into fighting condition so that they would be able to properly defend themselves and their spawns.  
And that meant food, live food, and lots of it.  
“I will.”  
Knight nodded and called his armor and blade.  
“And if that shadeling shows up again, you tie it up and offer it to Ylian as a snack!”  
Takeshi's tone held a hint of a growl.  
“Gladly.”  
While Knight took up post at Ylian's side, Takeshi noticed the look on the faces on several of the Obsidian guards, and those looks told him that they might just hunt the offending shadeling down and bring it to Ylian anyway.  
“Em, feel like joining me to catch something nice for your Susai to eat? I could use your help with taking it alive.”  
“Sounds interesting. Does yi want anything in particular?”  
“Fresh blood and a flaring life-force. We need to bring a few back here for yi. Hopefully I'll be able to talk yi into joining us once yi feels a bit stronger.”  
“I think we can manage that.”  


Two marks later Takeshi and Emelie returned with two of the buffalo creatures, charmed by Emelie's power they were docile enough to be handled and Ylian made short work of them.  
“We spotted several large herds of these, as well as some larger beasts and several packs of predators moving in the same direction as the caravan. Think you are strong enough to join us on a hunt tomorrow? I will guard the little ones with Logan and our raven brothers by my side and Em can help you gorge yourself.”  
“That sounds like a good idea.”  
Ylian quickly agreed, driven by hunger and a desire to protect their spawn.  
Takeshi's suspicion about the Obsidian guards came true another two marks later as they approached the fire where Lucifer, Takeshi and the others were resting with a runebound shadeling and offered it to Ylian.  
“It has been confirmed, this one has a habit of hunting pana and their spawn.”  
The words of the guard caused a ripple of fury and distaste in the auras of those gathered around the fire, and when Ylian handed Takeshi the box with the spawn and consumed the other shadeling the auras all swelled with approval  


“Em sweetie, I don't think you should be complaining about my appetite anymore...”  
Takeshi chuckled as they watched Ylian consume another beast that looked like a mix between a mammoth and a rhino, measuring about 5 meters at the withers the beasts were massive, and Ylian was absorbing their 5th one, on top of several of the buffaloes and a few predators.  
“Oh, I will still complain. You are not a shadeling and shouldn't eat like one.”  
“Come on, sweetie. I don't eat the hides and bones...”  
Takeshi mock wined.  
“Are you saying I'm a glutton?”  
Ylian whispered in his ear as they took their young back from Takeshi's hands.  
“Umm, no?”  
Takeshi's tone was teasing, playful and earned him a gentle nip on the ear to which he retaliated with a kiss.  
“Had your fill yet? Or should we round up a few more?”  
Emelie watched the scene in front of her with a grin.  
“I am quite sated, thank you for the assistance.”  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Em, would you like to hold yi?”  
Ylian held out their hand, one of the spawns resting in the cupped palm, curled together into its egg form.  
“Really?”  
Emelie lit up like a sun.  
“They are mature enough now, just try to keep your aura calm so you don't startle or scare yi, they are sensitive to energies. Once yi feels safe yi should change yi's form.”  
Ylian placed their spawn in her hand and she slowly brought it closer to her face.  
“Yi's a lot heavier than yi looks...”  
“Your mate gave them a lot of strength, that is what makes them feel so heavy.”  
There was no mistaking the pride in Ylian's voice.  
“Oh, yi's changing.”  
Emelie froze slightly, trying not to scare the little one.  
“Aw, yi's adorable!”  
“Yeah, if you like clouds with tentacles...”  
Knight teased over her shoulder.  
“Oh, be nice or shut up!”  
Emelie hissed at him and flared her wings slightly while being careful not to let her aura fluctuate.  
“Well aren't you a curious little thing...”  
She cooed at the spawn as it explored her hand and claws.  
“They are, and they will start becoming bolder soon, and start learning to take new forms.”  
Ylian watched as Emelie used her tail to tease their spawn, gently poking it with the tip and then pulling the tail away when the spawn reached for it.  


“Hey! This cheeky little rascal just took a taste from me... I thought you said they would only accept yours or Takeshi's energy?”  
Emelie yelped in surprise when she felt the spawn steal a bit of her energy.  
“I have never heard of a spawn this young accepting energy from anyone but their pana or para before...”  
Ylian sounded rather surprised.  
“If I may ask, do you know of any cases where the para is soulmated to someone other than the pana?”  
Knight had a feeling about what might be the cause.  
“No, can't say I have ever heard of it.”  
“It could be the mating bond, as his soulmate she carries a bit of his signature within her, maybe your little whelp recognizes that?”  
“You may be right. If she carries enough of his energy they might accept her.”  
Ylian agreed after a moment.  
“Well, whatever the reason is, this little glutton seems happy enough to eat yi's fill...”  
Emelie groused while holding up her tail, dangling the tip in front of her so she could get a closer look at the spawn who was clinging to it, feeding of her aura, all while carefully holding her hands beneath, in case the spawn let go.  
“Don't worry Em, shadeling spawns are sensitive to energies, but not fragile. Falling from your tail won't harm yi, merely teach yi not to let go of things without looking.”  
“Learning the hard way, huh?”  
“Indeed. They have many lessons they need to learn. All of them do and learning from experience is the best way as long as it can be done in a reasonably safe way.”  
Ylian held out their hands, urging Emelie to take the other three as well.  
“Please hold them, I would like to see if they all accept your energy.”  
“Em the tasty cousin...”  
She mock complained, but took them nonetheless and by the time they latched on to her energies she was smiling and cooing at them.  


“Now that you have unlocked your true power, you will be leaving soon, won't you?”  
Ylian spoke softly while watching their young explore Emelie's wings.  
“Not for a while. I need to train, learn as much as I can about my true abilities. I was hoping you would teach me about the shadow part of me.”  
She looked at Ylian for a while before speaking again.  
“And there's no way Take will leave while these little rascals are as vulnerable as they are now.”  
She caught one of the spawns and cupped her hands around it before gently blowing a puff of air charged with a tiny hint of power on it, causing it to revert to its egg form for a moment before slowly unfurling again to continue its exploration of her body and aura.  
When she looked up she studied Ylian for a while.  
“You know, you have been so different lately, it's confusing. You used to feel mostly male, but now you feel much more female.”  
Emelie's voice was a bit hesitant, it was a very private question and she was slightly surprised that Ylian answered without delay or hesitation.  


“It's not so strange. The instinctual behaviors related to childbearing and rearing are perceived as feminine traits by most species. While projecting confidence, dominance and power are considered masculine.”  
“It's not just that though, you seem a lot younger too.”  
“Well, it's my first time being pana so I am feeling a bit overwhelmed, out of my league, even a bit insecure which would make me seem younger.”  
“I would never have pegged you for being one to be insecure. But you know what, you seem a lot happier too.”  
“I am. I have been wanting to become pana for a very long time, but have been unable to find a suitable para. I didn't want to pick someone I didn't feel was right or do it on my own, risking to spawn a weak clutch that would perish, or fail to mature into true shadelings.”  
“I'm glad my Take proved to be a good match for you.”  
She brought her wing around and blew a puff of air and power on the spawn that was clinging to the thumb claw, making it revert to its egg form and she caught it as it fell and handed it back to Ylian before twisting the other wing around to give the next spawn the same treatment.  
The second and third spawn was quickly given the same treatment and handed back to Ylian while in their egg form, the fourth one was a bit trickier as it was hiding at the top of her new horns, out of reach of her hands and she didn't want to risk using her tail to grab it.  
“As am I, as am I.”  
Ylian smiled and reached for the last spawn, untangling it from Emelie's horn with a small spark of power.  
“They like you.”  
“Does that mean I will be the go-to babysitter, and random snack?”  
She mock complained.  
“Of course.”  
Ylian teased in return.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Now relax, keep hold of that dark, cool power. Let it wrap around you the same way you do when you step into the shadows, but instead of pushing it outward to form the gateway, pull it inward, use it to change.”  
Ylian repeated the familiar instructions with a calm voice and Emelie struggled to do as they said, but once again she lost hold of the power and ended up vanishing and reappearing from a nearby shadow.  
“Maybe I just don't have enough shadow in me to change my form.”  
Emelie sighed deeply.  
“I'm sure you will be able to learn it, just give it time. You have only been practicing these powers for two years, and things like this takes time when you are not born into a fluid form.”  
Ylian soothed her.  
“I'm still getting used to two years being _only_. It doesn't feel like I'm getting anywhere.”  
“Don't worry, you are improving. You gather your power faster, and hold it longer for each lesson. You just need to figure out how to trigger it, but that is something I can't help you with, it's different for everyone.”  
“If you say so...”  
Emelie sighed and began gathering her power again.  


“Okay, that's enough for now, you are not focusing anymore.”  
Ylian stopped Emelie as she began to gather her power once again.  
“I need to feed, properly.”  
She sighed.  
“Well you could have joined them you know.”  
“I would end up killing someone if I did. And that would cause a lot of trouble.”  
Takeshi had left for the Blue Sands with Seia, her daughters, Toben and a few of Lucifer's guards to fully re-claim the holdings of the former House Miara and Emelie had chosen to stay behind since she doubted she would be able to keep her cool if exposed to the ways of the Children of the Blue Sands.  


Over the past two years Seia had blossomed with her newfound freedom, and she had found love in one of the palace guards and Roghan had confirmed that they were a soul-match.  
Knowing that, Takeshi had asked Lucifer to gift the guard to House Shamarai, with the guard being of his house Seia's family could not object if he _gifted_ her to the guard as mate.  
Since Emelie was his soulmate and they had formed the bond before he formally accepted Seia, Seia was considered a _spare_ mate, expendable and those mates were often used as bargaining ships, though in this case it would be a rouse.  
The children would still be considered his though, but he would not separate them, they would live with their mother, however, of the six only five remained, Arath had been banished half a year after their return to the Obsidian Halls.  
Arath had caused quite a bit of trouble from the start, but when he tried to force himself on a young female there was no choice but to brand him with the rune of the outcast and banish him from all demon societies.  
He had admitted his actions with no sign of remorse, instead he acted as if it had been his right so he had been allowed to live only because Takeshi had found him, and stopped him, before he had a chance to do more than scare the girl and give her a few bruises.  
Takeshi would return once he had set up Seia and her new mate as caretakers of the property he had gained when he defeated the night-demon that had challenged him.  
For Emelie that meant that she had to feed from other sources, even Knight didn't have the stamina to be her sole source of energy as she spent a lot of it in training.  


“Don't worry Em, if Logan is unable to give you enough energy the rest of us will gladly assist.”  
“I know. It's just... It's not the same...”  
“You miss your mate. There is no shame in that. A mated succubus prefers the energy of their mate, as does most vampirics. They synchronize with their mates, making it easier for them to sate the hunger.”  
“I know...”  
Emelie sighed even deeper than before, exhaustion starting to creep into her aura.  
“You know, it would be much easier if you learned to accept other partners, even if it's just for a quick snack. It will be hard for you to keep your hunger sated with just two males.”  
Ylian scolded gently, the conversation was familiar, they had spoken of it many times before.  
“I'm trying!”  
She hissed at Ylian.  
After her mating she had finally felt comfortable with sharing herself with Knight, to feed from him in the true way of the succubi, but she was still struggling with the idea of bedding someone outside the pack, even if it was just to feed.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Lady Em!”  
Brenna waved with a wide smile.  
“Brenna, it's nice to see you, it's been quite some time now.”  
Brenna and her mate-to-be waved for Emelie to join them on the bench.  
“I apologize for not adjusting my form, but it might be unwise in my current condition.”  
As she shifted slightly Emelie noticed she was pregnant.  
“Congratulation! When are you due to lay?”  
Emelie beamed at her.  
“I should have laid already, but the healer assures me there is nothing wrong. Probably just nerves, it's not uncommon to be late your first time.”

They spent most of the day talking, catching up on all that had happened in the past four years.  
Brenna was still courting her hunter, the younger brother had chosen to drop out of the courting after seeing the deep feelings that had developed between the two.  
Their courting would be a bit more traditional than her own had been, probably lasting for 50-100 years before a mating was considered.  
Their conversation was interrupted though when Brenna suddenly became agitated and began to shift around in her seat, shielding herself with her wings and before long she was holding an egg, about double the size of an emu egg with a shiny, deep black, shell.  
While she was laying her egg Hugin and Munin scrambled around the local stores to find something to help her carry and protect the egg and they quickly returned with a woven basket, a pile of blankets and a handful of smooth fire-crystals to help keep it warm as well as a small bucket of warm water, a few washcloths and a small piece of unscented, soft, soap.  
“Thank you.”  
Brenna took the cloth and cleaned the egg while chirping and cooing, with the egg clean she carefully wrapped it and placed it in the basket before cleaning herself a bit.  
Emelie was a bit surprised that no one seemed to notice that Brenna had just laid her egg in the middle of the park.  
“It's not an entirely uncommon occurrence, the need to lay can come quite sudden, even for experienced mothers and obsidian angels are quite active while they carry. Everyone here has probably seen it before, even you, though you may not have noticed, or realized.”  
Munin explained in a soft whisper, as usual he seemed to know exactly what had her confused.  
Thinking about it she quickly realized that she had been underneath Brenna's wings, giving her an excellent view of the laying of the egg while everyone else had been on the other side of the feathery barrier.  
They quickly talked Brenna into going home and get some rest but before they separated Emelie made her promise that she would visit, or at least send an invitation when the little one was ready to be seen.  
As she watched them walk away Emelie could feel a twinge of longing.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Life_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Aw, how cute can you be?”  
Emelie cooed at the little girl in Lilith's arms and Takeshi found himself agreeing, she was one of the cutest things he had ever seen.  
She had her father's black hair and feathered wings, covered in soft, fluffy, down feathers that were just as black as her hair and a long tail curled around her mother's arm and a pair of tiny horns could be seen hiding among the tufts of wild hair.  
When she looked up at them she revealed bright red eyes, wide with childish wonder and after a few moments of looking at Emelie she reached out her hands for her and flicked her wings with excitement.  
Emelie quickly caught her as she threw herself from her mother's arms, careful not to hurt her wings she shifted the girl into a more comfortable hold.  
“Easy there cutie, it's much too early for you to try to fly.”  
While her wings were no doubt large enough to carry her she only had a handful of true feathers, the rest was just soft baby down, it would be years before she had the feathers needed for flight.  
“I'm Susu, not cutie...”  
Lilith's daughter, Susu, complained with a huff.  
“Of course you are Susu little one, but you are still a cutie.”  
Emelie tapped Susu on the nose which earned her a scowl that was quickly replaced by a radiant smile.  
While she played with the little girl she thought back to the first time she had seen her.  


Shortly after their return from the Silver Lakes, Lucifer had gone into his heat and left for a few days to sate the lust, a moon later a heavily pregnant Lilith arrived at the palace to give birth.  
Like many demons Lilith carried her young for a very short time compared to humans, though she did give live birth rather than lay eggs, and she had come because she wanted the girl's father to be present, and she also asked that Emelie was present for the birth.  
Emelie had been rather surprised as she watched Lilith smile and laugh her way through the birth, seemingly taking great joy and pleasure in the process despite the obvious pain.  
Emelie recalled the thrill of excitement she had felt as she prepared to aid Lilith's delivery, her grandmother had insisted that she should be the one to assist her, to _catch_ the baby girl as she emerged from the womb.  
She had stared in wonder at the tiny infant in her hands, naked wings tucked tightly against her back and the tail had quickly come up to curl around her body with the tip instinctively seeking out and curling around the nearest creature which just happened to be Emelie's hand.  
Lucifer was beaming with pride when Emelie handed him his daughter and he smiled widely at Emelie as she struggled to unwrap the thin, fragile, tail from her hand and wrap it around his hand instead.  
“She likes you.”  
Lilith grinned through her exhaustion.  


With the birthing done Lilith had secluded herself in her rooms for a few days before leaving to return to her own hidden castle to raise her baby girl in safety.  
They had not seen or heard from her for seven years until today when she had suddenly appeared at the gates with a little girl clinging to her.  
Susu appeared to be around three years old, demons matured differently than humans, and she was as curious as they came once she had gotten over her shyness around the new, powerful creatures that surrounded her.  


“You are quite the natural.”  
Lilith teased as Emelie tried to untangle her tail from Susu's tail.  
“So I've heard...”  
She muttered while she dislocated a few joints in her own tail so that she could undo the knot that had formed without hurting the girl's slender tail.  
“Oh, that must have hurt...”  
There was pity, and quite a lot of gratitude in Lilith's voice.  
“There, all done. Now you be careful with how you wrap that tail of yours.”  
Emelie gave the tip of Susu's tail a quick kiss before letting go.  
“I will!”  
Susu promised with usual exuberance of a child.  
“Now run along and play with the others.”  
“Okay!”  


Emelie let go of a deep sigh as she watched Susu join Ylian's little group of rascals and Ani, Brenna's little girl.  
Takeshi had named the girl after the Groove-billed Ani since her baby chirp, a signature sound that would in time evolve into her name, sounded like the call of the Ani.  
“You love children, and you obviously long for children of your own, yet you refuse to even try to conceive.”  
Lilith kept her voice low as she curled her wing around Emelie.  
“I want children, but I don't want to lose them before they are even born. I'm terrified of the thought of becoming pregnant only to find out that the child was too weak and was killed by my own power.”  
Emelie's aura reflected her pain and fear so Lilith pulled her close, smothering her aura with her own so the children wouldn't sense her.  
“I am sorry. Such is the curse of my daughters and their daughters. The curse of my precious little Lilim girls. The only solace I can offer is that your mate is strong, your chances of a successful breeding are better with him than with most.”  
“Better, but still not good?”  
“I'm afraid not. Even with a powerful demon you would probably lose more than you successfully birth.”  
“I suspected as much...”  
Emelie leaned into Lilith's touch, letting it soothe her fears.

 

 

 

 


	5. Returning Home

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Take!”  
Emelie was beaming with pride when she entered the private garden.  
“Hello love, what has you in such a good mood?”  
She didn't answer him, instead she gathered her power around her and in a small flash of power the petite blonde was replaced by a tall, curvy, redhead with sparkling blue eyes.  
“Congratulations sweetie!”  
He pulled her in for a searing kiss, it did feel odd though as the form she had transformed into was so much taller.  
“Over eight years, but I finally found it.”  
“No one ever doubted you would.”  
“Ylian told me there is nothing more for me to learn from yi, that it's time for me to find my own path.”  
“Indeed it is. It's time for us to prepare to return home.”  
They had stayed longer than anticipated to give Emelie a chance to learn how to transform like a shadow.  
“It's been almost ten years...”  
Emelie's tone was slightly hesitant.  
“You are forgetting about the chronoshift, only one year has passed for them.”  
“After all this time I'm still trying to get used to things like that.”  
“Don't worry, there is still some time left to adjust to the idea.”  
Takeshi teased, it would take some time for them to get ready to leave, they had gained quite a bit of assets that needed to be secured, allies and friends that needed saying goodbye to, and they needed to find caretakers for the various beasts they had found or been gifted with over the years, many could not be brought to the human realm.  
“But for now, how about you give me back my beautiful little mate?”  
Takeshi smelled her hair, even her scent had changed slightly and he found it unsettling.  
Emelie mock scolded him for being shallow and fixated on looks as she returned to her true form. **  
**

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Lord Shamarai, a message has arrived from the Master of the Roost.”  
One of the black-winged guards bowed deeply and held out a small silver platter with a rolled up parchment sealed by a wax seal with the silhouette of a flying bird that looked like a swift or a swallow.  
Takeshi took the scroll and dismissed the guard with a sigh, he disliked the way some of the guards would fawn and grovel, most would address him as _Iero,_ the male form of _Ieri_ which was similar to how you would use _Sir_ in English and the level of respect, and formality was somewhere between -san and -sama in Japanese.  
For the most part Urui followed a pattern for gender distinction that was very similar to Spanish, -o for male, -a for female and with the addition of -i for the base form..  
He quickly read the message which was short and to the point.  


“ _She has laid her clutch.”_  


_She_ in this case was a demonic version of a homing pigeon, it was similar to a swift, or a swallow, and like a homing pigeon it could always find its way home and it was a true realm-walker, able to freely cross the realms to find its way.  
Home for these birds was wherever the egg hatched, and the hens always laid even numbered clutches where the eggs were laid in pairs, the two chicks forever bound to each other.  
They could always find their soul-twin and the place where their egg had hatched, so if the eggs were separated and hatched in two different locations the birds could always find their way between those locations, if you brought one of the birds with you when traveling its twin could always find you.  
It was also possible to craft beacon of sorts from the shells of their eggs that could be used to set a temporary home while traveling.  
Takeshi intended to leave one egg with Seia and bring the other with him to the human realm and initiate the hatching once they had returned to their island to make sure she had a quick way of reaching him, the palace had other means of contact.  
It had taken quite a bit of talking, currency and a bet, to convince the Master to part with a pair of the valuable eggs.  


“Good day iero _.”  
_Takeshi greeted the Master of the Roost with a slight nod.  
“Ah, Takeshi iero. Ready to collect your price?”  
Takeshi was glad that he had become quite proficient in the language of the Obsidian Halls over the years as the old angel's Urui was near unintelligible and heavily mixed with his native chirps.  
“Indeed I am.”  
He was quickly brought to a fairly large nest where the pure black bird rested, carefully shifting her eggs, though the eggs didn't really need her to incubate them, they would develop just fine on their own.  
They wouldn't hatch until triggered to do so by pulse of aura, either from the parent, or as they had been conditioned to for generations, the Master of the Roost, or one of the keepers.  
Takeshi had spent some time learning the art, and had been taught how to trigger the hatching, and triggering the hatching of one egg would cause its twin to hatch as well.  
The Master of the Roost asked him to choose which pair of eggs he wanted, each pair was different from the other.  
One was a deep emerald green, another pure black, the third pair was a blueish purple and the final pair a mottled gray, lacking the clear gemstone quality of the others but yet he found himself drawn to the rather drab looking eggs.  
“Those two, the gray ones.”  
“Hmph, I should have known better than to let someone with your instincts have their pick...”  
The old master groused, confirming that Takeshi had made a good choice.  


“We have bred them for countless generations, so long that they are no longer able to produce viable offspring with their wild brethren. This has caused the bloodlines to grow thin, but on rare occasions a pair of old-blood eggs will be laid.”  
He explained that the old-blood were able to have viable offspring with their wild counterparts, and that offspring was compatible with all of the bred bloodlines, making them invaluable for bringing in fresh blood.  
“I can imagine you would not wish to part with them then.”  
“I gave my word that you would have your pick of her next clutch and so you will. You chose them, they are yours.”  
Takeshi could tell though that the old demon did not wish to part with them.  
“How about we make a deal. You may use them for breeding if you pay half the value of the offspring to my house. Though only for the preservation of the bloodlines, I will not see them bred for profit.”  
Takeshi offered.  
“A most generous offer that will be thoroughly considered.”  
It was a good offer, but even at half the value it was a lot of currency, especially since a clutch was usually 4 to 8 pairs of eggs.  


When he returned to the guest-wing, that had been their residence for the past 9 years he was carrying two carefully crafted boxes, one for each egg and after a few quick words with Hugin and Munin he headed out to find Knight so that they could head to the Blue Sands and deliver the egg that would be left with Seia.  
Seia had fully mated her guard, but thanks to Lucifer gifting Takeshi with the guard they were still house Shamarai.  
Along with the egg he also had a long list of instructions about how he wanted the children to be raised, especially regarding the girls, and their future First Rite, he would not allow it to be performed by one of the Blue Sands males, instead they would travel to the Obsidian Palace when it was time, and Lucifer would assist in finding a suitable male to be their Guide, or take it upon himself to ensure that it was done right by the girls.  


He quickly went through the mental checklist of things that still needed to be done before they left and found that it was about halfway done.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“A word if I may?”  
Takeshi waited for the delegation to leave before approaching the dais.  
“Take, what can I do for you this fine day?”  
Lucifer sounded tired and Takeshi couldn't blame him, he had spent the better part of the day listening to a group of farmers squabbling over property lines, grazing rights on nearby common land, contamination of crops from crops grown on nearby fields and suspicions of unwanted mating of livestock.  
“Has there been any news about those _Itiri_ that Em wanted?”  
Itiri was a popular meat and egg fowl within the demon-realm, the small birds looked like a mix between various _Galliformes_ species like quail, ptarmigan and pheasant, the pure white birds were good egg layers and the meat was succulent and tender with a rich, gamey taste, but they were tiny, about the size of a button-quail.  
“Ah, sorry about that. I had intended to inform you earlier but these quarrelsome farmers took a lot longer than anticipated to deal with.”  
Lucifer rose and joined Takeshi, sending one of the servants to fetch a meal.  
“The eggs arrived earlier today, they should be brought to your rooms once the carrier has been prepared. The bird farmer will see to that a few adults birds are ready for you when you leave.”  


Itiri eggs were easy to hatch in incubators and the chicks were quite capable of eating on their own so adult birds were not needed, but having a few adults helped to teach the chicks to forage and avoid predators.  
The Itiri were nearly flightless and disliked water, so they would stay put on the island even if given free range and they would be unable to reproduce on their own due to their eggs needing a very specific energy only found in some crystals native to the demon-realm to hatch.  
They had considered other breeds as well, but the larger, omnivore birds would pose a risk to the native animals of the island, especially the smaller frogs and lizards, the Itiri, though equally opportunistic omnivores were to small to be a major threat, only able to catch smaller bugs or scavenge from available carrion.  
The downside was that they would have to carry the birds and the eggs across the borderlands, luckily though the crystalline ore needed for their nests could be transported using the rune circles.  
“Good, that's one more thing gone from the list. Em is having quite the case of the pre-travel jitters...”  
Emelie had been driving him up the walls with her constant worry, checking and rechecking everything.  
“I don't think anyone has managed to miss that.”  
Lucifer teased in return, Emelie had been running his staff ragged for almost a week now.  


They took a seat in one of the small gardens and soon a table was brought in and servants began filling it with platters of food.  
“She is scared, so scared...”  
Takeshi spoke up after a while, his voice weary with a touch of concern, and sadness.  
“Scared of what?”  
Lucifer was pretty sure he knew what the problem was, but he asked anyway.  
“She is afraid of losing control and harming the girls. Here even the weakest creature has a natural resistance against demonic energy.”  
“I had a feeling that might be the case.”  
Lucifer sighed deeply.  
“Unfortunately there's not much we can do to help her with that, only time can. She needs to learn to trust herself.”  
“I know, but that does not make it any easier.”  
There was a long silence as Lucifer studied Takeshi's expression, even going as far as gently prodding at his aura.  
“And you have your own fears, don't you?”  
There was another long silence before Takeshi answered with a sigh.  


“Dan, and Manda...”  
“Your pack, your lovers.”  
Lucifer struck at the core of the issue with the accuracy of experience.  
“Indeed. For them only a year has passed and I return a long since mated male.”  
“And you worry how they will react and how that will affect your pack, your chosen ones.”  
“Dan will be a bit jealous about the mating and he will try to hide it by acting grumpy but it won't last for very long. Manda on the other hand, I have no idea how she will react.”  
“Manda, she is the daughter of Atlantis, right?”  
“Indeed...”  
“And you love her.”  
It wasn't a question but Takeshi nodded anyway.  
“Does she know?”  
Takeshi's instant bothered blush had Lucifer chuckling at him.  
“Well, that is part of the problem. I kinda dropped the L-bomb on her when we left to come here.”  
The look that Lucifer gave him made Takeshi raise his hands in a placating gesture as his aura drew back slightly, not quite submissive but not far from.  
“I assume your pack has already read you the riot act?”  
Hearing Lucifer use the very human expression threw Takeshi off for a moment.  
“Repeatedly, along with very detailed descriptions of what they will do to me if I don't handle things to their liking when we return.”  
“You truly have a good pack.”  
“I do, don't I...”  
“I wouldn't worry too much about the rest of your pack, if they are anything like your mate and your beta they will be able to handle it. They might give you a good beating for the trouble but I'm sure your pack will end up even stronger than before.”  
Lucifer looked at Takeshi in silence, something in his eyes made Takeshi want to squirm but he managed to fight it down.  
“But you are more worried that they will reject you, aren't you? Worried that their hearts will have found a new target.”  
Lucifer's words struck true once again.  
“I find myself being a far more selfish creature than I would prefer. I don't know if I will ever be able to love Dan, or Logan, but yet I wish to keep their love.”  
The color slowly bled from Lucifer's eyes while Takeshi spoke and he soon found himself under the scrutiny of the eyes of a seer.  
“I don't think you are as selfish as you claim. You don't care if they love someone else, as long as they still love you as well, do you?”  
Before Takeshi had a chance to answer the barrier around the garden pulsed, alerting them that someone was entering and a moment later Emelie's power sifted through the garden.  


“Ah, so this is where you were hiding.”  
The barriers around the rooms and gardens prevented those within from feeling each other's auras, though Takeshi, Emelie and Logan could still use the pack or mating bonds to locate each other in case of an emergency.  
“Hello there sweetie.”  
Takeshi greeted her with a kiss, and Lucifer tried to give the same greeting which earned him a slap and a hiss.  
“The caravan from the Riverlands just arrived so I'm gonna take the boys and go check if they brought anything of interest. You two want to tag along?”  
“As much as I love going shopping with you I'm afraid I have a prior engagement. I need to head to the library and see the head scribe about those copies she promised me.”  
Takeshi quickly explained which earned him a pout before she turned to Lucifer with a teasing smile.  
“What about you Uncle Luci?”  
There was a strangled noise from one of the guards at the way she spoke to the Lord of the Obsidian Halls, the guard was obviously fairly new on the job as it was hardly the strangest way she had addressed the old angel.  
“I would love to, alas, I still need to solve this issue with the farmers.”  
Emelie gave another pout that was quickly replaced by a brilliant smile.  
“Oh well, your loss.”  
She spun around and began skipping toward the doorway.  
“Do try to be nice to the guys, okay Em?”  
Takeshi called after her, he knew she would not be able to resist visiting the marsh witches, and they would not even try resisting playing their games with Logan and the twins.  
“I'll protect them if you get that family tree Maroue promised he would make.”  


Takeshi sighed, even after almost 10 years Maroue still hadn't been able to prove his worth so Emelie refused to acknowledge him as her father.  
Instead she had adopted Roghan and Ylian as substitute fathers, though the pair did mostly act like crazy cousins, and she barely tolerated Maroue's presence, even Maria's spirit had begun to shun him about a year after Emelie's presentation.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“You need to get that guard of yours nice and drunk, maybe then he will gain the courage he needs.”  
Lucifer whispered in Takeshi's ear while observing the way Hugin kept glancing at them.  
“Or maybe I should just lock the two of you in a room with nothing but shiiza to eat...”  
“Don't be so hard on him. After all, this, us leaving, is what has been holding him back.”  
The plans for their return home was coming along nicely, but it was also causing a bit of tension, especially with Hugin who had developed a strong bond with Takeshi over the years. But the knowledge that Takeshi and the others would one day leave and return to the human realm held Hugin back from acting on his desires, even when Takeshi had given him rather blatant invitations.  
It wasn't love, at least not the way humans understood it, but something more primal, instinctive.  
Hugin recognized Takeshi as a true mate, someone who would make a nearly perfect match and being unmated his instincts were pulling at him, telling him that he should try to win Takeshi's favor, to try to earn the right to court him.  
Takeshi could feel the pull of the mating instincts as well, but it was different for him since he had found his soulmate and deep down a part of him had known since the first time he came close enough to her to touch her aura so the call of his mating instinct had never been very strong for a pack alpha.  
Lucifer had explained that most demons would lose their mating instinct if they found their soulmate, but some, strong alphas like Takeshi, had the instinct to build a pack, an instinct that would make them seek out multiple mates.  
“My brother will regret it if he does not act on his desirest before you leave.”  
Munin added in a somber tone.  
“Perhaps, but it's still his choice.”  
Takeshi sighed, he knew Munin was right, but he wouldn't force the issue.  
He had tried to encourage Hugin countless times over the past ten years, but whenever he managed to get Hugin to respond to him the response would be hesitant and confused at first, then hungry and desperate, but that almost instantly gave way to an intense flare of true fear that made Takeshi back away.  
The way Hugin instantly looked away and began talking to Knight when Takeshi met his gaze made it rather clear that he would get the same reaction again if he tried to invite him.  


“You can spend the night with me instead.”  
Lucifer whispered in Takeshi's ear, an offer that had been made one way or another on a nearly daily basis since their first meeting.  
It wasn't that Takeshi was unwilling, the problem was that they were both dominant, and very stubborn, neither of them willing to submit to the other and unless one of them submitted they would end up fighting rather than enjoying the intended pleasures.  
“As stubborn as always.”  
Takeshi pushed his own energy against Lucifer's and quickly fell silent, instead of the usual answering push Lucifer's energy pulled back slightly and bowed to Takeshi's, signaling his submission.  
“I am stubborn, and patient, but I am also a very curious creature, and I have countless years of experience of submitting regardless of my will. Submitting to get something I want isn't as hard for me as it is for you.”  
Lucifer reduced the size of his form slightly and gently brushed his wings against Takeshi's arms as he spoke, causing Takeshi to tilt his head back with a shuddering breath, resting it against Lucifer's shoulder.  
“Besides, I won't be truly submitting, just not trying to dominate. That is a very important difference, one that I know you have learned.”  
Lucifer trailed kisses along Takeshi's shoulders and neck, grinning when he felt the rise of Takeshi's aura, and pheromones, that signaled his growing arousal.  
Takeshi allowed the sensations flow through him while he pushed at Lucifer's aura, testing and prodding but it continued to bend to his power, subdued, controlled, not entirely submissive, but close enough to keep from triggering his own instinct to fight for dominance.  
Turning around he pushed slightly, pinning Lucifer against the tree behind them and claimed a rather rough, and dominant, kiss.  
But even when Takeshi pushed the limit, Lucifer's energy remained calm, controlled and there was no hint of it rising to fight back or dominate Takeshi's energy.  
“Well, if you ask like that, who am I to refuse.”  
Takeshi's whisper held a teasing promise as he reached out with his aura to let the others know he would be leaving for the night, something that earned them a few hoots and an _About time!_ from Emelie.  
“I find myself inclined to agree with her.”  
Lucifer's voice was breathless as he folded his wings around them and called on the magic of his home to bring them both to his private rooms.  


“Don't worry. I gave you my word, tonight you will be the dominant one.”  
Lucifer soothed when the flare of power caused Takeshi to grasp the base of his wings with a low growl.  
“My power won't rise unless you ask me to take a more dominant position.”  
Lucifer ducked down slightly and began to trail soft kisses along Takeshi's jawline and the corner of his mouth, a submissive, even apologetic, signal for most species and it did work as intended.  
The instincts that Takeshi had absorbed from the shadow beast slowly settled down, allowing Takeshi to regain a measure of control which he used to return the kisses, but in a far more teasing manner and while he did he carefully undid the ties and buckles that kept Lucifer's light armor in place.  
“Allow me.”  
Lucifer shrugged out of the simple tunic that was worn under the armor and reached out to undo the ties of Takeshi's clothes.  
When he reached around to undo one of the ties in the back there was a slight growl of objection at the rather dominant position.  
“Oh, touchy are we?”  
Lucifer teased lightly as he moved behind Takeshi to undo the ties without crowding him but before he had a chance to, Takeshi spun around and pounced on him, pinning him against the giant bed at the center of the room.  
Lucifer hissed slightly at the sudden strain on his wings but before it became painful Takeshi pulled back slightly, allowing him to shift his wings into a more comfortable position before he once again pushed down, pinning Lucifer underneath him.  
“Such control, even now.”  
Lucifer reached up, once again reaching for the ties of Takeshi's clothes and this time there was no negative reaction, his position pinned beneath Takeshi's body more than sufficient to soothe ruffled instincts.  
As the soft material fell away he began to trace the lines of Takeshi's tattoo's, starting with the tribal design on his right pectoral that represented Ylian and their four spawns, feeling the flicker of energy hidden within.  
Takeshi's reaction to the touch brought out a pleased sound, the chittering coo made Takeshi look down with a somewhat dazed smile.  
Leaning down Takeshi began to trail kisses and soft nibbles over the exposed body beneath him and with a gentle nudge he made Lucifer turn over so that he could reach the sensitive area around the mashen.  


“Mmmh, that beta of yours has taught you well.”  
Lucifer had abandoned even trying to speak Urui, instead his words came out as a soft warble accentuated by a few chirps that revealed his satisfaction and slowly fading arousal.  
“Actually, Dan has taught me far more. Logan is too much like me to serve as a good lesson.”  
Takeshi traced a claw along Lucifer's sternum as he spoke, watching the muscles twitch slightly, once again noticing the slight difference in how the muscles moved, caused by the addition of flight muscles.  
He had studied the anatomy in detail, but he still found it interesting to watch the effect.  
“Ah, your human lover. I suppose he would require a more tender touch than that overgrown mountain crossbreed of yours.”  
The choice of words might have sounded harsh, but the trills and chirps held no trace of the sub-harmonics that signaled disrespect.  
“Indeed he does, but not for the reasons you believe.”  
Takeshi recalled the conversation with Dan that had nearly made him travel to Sweden on a manhunt.  
“Dan carries some emotional scars with him. In particular regarding intimacy. His first male lover had some superficial similarities to me, larger and stronger, as well as highly dominant.”  
“Sounds more than just superficial.”  
Lucifer's observation had Takeshi instantly snarling at him.  
“I am nothing like that _dokar_!”  
Lucifer immediately apologized, ensuring that he had meant no disrespect, _Dokar_ was a harsh word to use, it was reserved for those that would abuse those weaker, or dependent, for rapists and similar wretches.  


“He took advantage of the young, and somewhat insecure Dan, and when those insecurities made Dan want to wait before taking their sexual relation to the next level that dokar became violent and tried to force himself on Dan.”  
Takeshi spoke of how Dan's fears would occasionally surface if Takeshi didn't hold back his strength, or if he became too dominant.  
“He taught me many things about satisfying a male lover, and about maintaining control.”  
“Now you just need to learn how to let go of that control, and how to allow someone else control.”  
A decidedly teasing note entered Lucifer's tone as he spoke.  
“Oh, you would enjoy that, wouldn't you?”  
Takeshi teased back.  
“Very much so, and I would make sure you enjoyed it just as much.”  
“I'm sure you would try...”  
Takeshi's answer was interrupted by the familiar deep sound of a singing bowl, calling the residents of the palace to breakfast.  
“I guess we should join the others, or they might just come looking for us.”  
Takeshi sighed.  
“We could always invite them to join us if they do.”  
Lucifer chirped, but he did get out of the bed as he spoke.  


“So, how was he?”  
Emelie clung to Takeshi's shoulder while questioning him, and stealing bits of his breakfast.  
Her question was met by silence while Takeshi closed his eyes, as if focusing on recalling every detail of the night he had just spent with Lucifer and after a while his smile began to turn downright sinful.  
“Mmm...”  
There was a slight pause as the smile turned into a teasing grin.  
“Why don't you find out for yourself? I'm sure he won't refuse you.”  
The teasing reply earned him a frustrated shriek followed by some rather colorful expressions in several demon languages.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Takeshi looked out over the chaos that had overtaken the large garden in front of the palace as it was being prepared for a feast, it was barely a mark into morning but the entire palace was abuzz with activity.  
It was finally time for them to leave, everything was packed and ready and they would head back to the human realm the next day, but not before receiving a big sendoff.  
The area in front of the palace was a mix between a garden, a park and a town square with a large stone paved area in the middle surrounded by various plants and water features as well as smaller paved areas connected by walkways.  


He watched a group of hunters set up one of their rune circles, trying to make it large enough to allow them to move an entire adult gong into the garden without needing to cut it apart, but they seemed to have some problems adapting the shape to the available space in the garden.  
Normally it would be a perfect circle, simply enlarged to fit what was being transported, but the space allowed in the garden was rectangular so the rune weave needed to be adapted to fit, something that took more than just knowledge, it required skill and the ability to adapt, to think outside the box.  
“Need a hand with that?”  
Takeshi offered the hunters working on trying to bend the circle without distorting the runes too far for them to function properly.  
“It would be most appreciated if you could offer any ideas on how to form the circle to encompass this entire area.”  
The young hunter indicated toward a simple rope fence that circled the stone paved area in the middle of the garden.  
Takeshi walked around the area to get a better feel for it before sitting down next to the hunters.  
“What have you tried so far?”  


They quickly described what they had tried, all of it was rather basic, trying to distort the shape of the circle, as Takeshi has suspected the young hunters lacked the experience needed to make more advanced alterations of the runes.  
“Considering the body shape of a gong we should be able to make an elliptic summoning area by making two circles, one at each point, then connecting them with the same type of rune pattern that is used to direct energy currents. We might need to add a few amplifiers to get a stable teleportation field though.”  
“It might work.”  
One of the younger hunters quickly caught on to what Takeshi was planning and the other hunters agreed, quickly starting to form the needed runes.  
“I'll head to the storehouse and have them adjust the circle there, the field will be easier to stabilize if both circles match more closely.”  
One of the hunters spoke up once the runes were completed.  
“That's good thinking, you do that.”  
The hunter, a shadow demon of some sort, fidgeted for a moment before speaking up again.  
“May I?”  
He indicated toward Takeshi's shadow, asking for permission to step into it in order to shadow travel.  
“Of course, go ahead.”  
Takeshi shifted his position slightly to give a larger shadow for the young demon to use.  
“Thank you, _Iero Matra_.”  
As the demon vanished Takeshi shook his head slightly at the title, _Matra_ was usually reserved for high ranking magic wielders, combined with Iero the young shadow had pretty much addressed him as _Archmage_.  


A few minutes later the teleportation field flickered to life and the gong began to materialize and Takeshi noted it was an unusually large specimen which explained the hunters insistence on bringing it in whole, it made a good tribute, and excellent proof of their skill.  
Moments after the gong appeared the hunter stepped out of the shadow it cast and walked over to them and thanked Takeshi again before turning to the other hunters.  
“They are ready to start transporting the rest of the items now.”  
The two circles used to bring in the gong were quickly disconnected and they began using them to bring in crates of fire stone, fragrant wood shavings, and herbs as well as metal rods that would be used to build a roasting spit and a fire of sorts that would be able to cook the giant creature.  
With the roasting spit completed several of the guards that carried noble blood took their larger forms and grabbed the spit and lifted it, and the gong, onto the supports.  
With the gong raised from the ground the hunters scrambled to construct a raised fire pit below it, once a simple brick wall had been built they began to fill it with fire stones.  
Fire stones didn't really burn, they generated heat but no actual flames and they were used for a wide range of tasks that required heat, like heating water for cooking and bathing, campfires and heating of homes by building them into the walls.  
However since they generated heat without smoke they were rarely used for roasting as it would add no flavor.  
But they couldn't build an actual fire large enough to cook the gong so they began to lay a bedding of fire stones and covered it with herbs and wood shavings to generate the flavorful smoke that would enhance the taste of the meat.  


“Takeshi iero?”  
A feline demoness approached him hesitantly, the way the tip of her tail twitched revealing her nervousness.  
“Yes, how can I help you?”  
“I have been tasked with preparing the human dish you call _Sushi_ , but I am uncertain if I am doing it correctly.”  
“Well, let's go have a look then.”  
“Thank you very much iero.”  
“Please, address me as Take.”  
“As you wish Take.”  
“And how should I address you, _sweetie_?”  
She blushed and huffed slightly at his tone, then smile before introducing herself as Mieni.  
“So. Mieni, what part of the preparation are you concerned about.”  
“It's the rice. I have studied the process, but none of the rice we have matches the rice used in the human realm. Also I am unsure about the dosage of the rice vinegar, sugar and salt.”  
Takeshi has faced the same problem when they first arrived in the demon realm, but he had long since solved it.  
“Do you have any of the blue rice from the Riverlands?”  
“Yes, plenty.”  
“How about purple rice from the plains around the silver lakes?”  
“Yes, I have that as well.”  
Mieni was starting to sound rather curious.  
“Red rice from the red plains?”  
Mieni just nodded.  
“And finally, silver rice from the cloud farms?”  
“Some, but not much.”  
“It should be okay, we only need a little of it.”  
Takeshi had found that none of the demon realm rice worked on their own so he had started to mix different strains of rice until he found a mix that had a suitable taste.  


“Hugin, would you go fetch a cask of my saké please? The one made from the black mountain-rice.”  
Hugin had been his constant shadow since the preparations for the feast had started and seemed somewhat reluctant to leave.  
“Of course...”  
Hugin turned to one of the other guards, assigning the guard to keep an eye on Takeshi before leaving, but Takeshi was sure he would rather have asked the guard to fetch the cask, but the guard was not one of the royal guards so he would not be allowed to enter the inner palace.  
When they arrived at a small cooking wagon Mieni showed Takeshi how to activate the runes that brought rice and other ingredients from the stores and he quickly began showing her how to mix the rices.  
The result didn't really have much in common with sushi rice, the flavors were more complex, but Takeshi considered the end result to be even better than the sushi he remembered from the human realm.  
Selecting two bowls of similar weight he set them on the balance scale and added a small fire stone to the lighter bowl to balance the scale before filling the other bowl with rice, then balancing it by adding water to the other bowl.  
He then emptied the rice into a basket before adding enough water to the bowl to balance it against the control bowl ten times and emptying it into a larger container.  
He repeated the process of balancing the scales again, but this time with larger containers and the water as the target weight before weighing the blue rice and placing it into another basket, then adding an equal weight of red rice into a third basket.  
Finally he placed purple rice equal to the combined weight of the red and blue rice into a large cooking basket that had been filled with water and brought to a gentle boil.  
“1 part silver rice, 10 parts red and 10 parts blue rice, and finally 20 parts purple, by dry weight. The water should have about 35 parts per 1000 of golden mountain salt.”  
Takeshi quickly explained.  
“The purple rice needs to be added first, then the red, the silver and finally the blue.”  
Mieni added while he measured the salt and added it.  
It wasn't really a question but Takeshi nodded anyway, each of the different rices had slightly different cooking time.  
While they waited for Hugin to return with the saké he explained about mixing the flavoring.  
“Normally you would use rice vinegar, sugar and saké or mirin, but since the taste of this mix of rice is different we will do it slightly differently. We will use the saké I have made and manaroka sap. It can be made with orcha as well, but then you will only need half as much manaroka sap, the balance between sweetness and sourness should be the same as in mature shiiza berries.”  


When Hugin arrived Takeshi was going through the toppings, giving Mieni tips on how to cut the various meats and vegetables to bring out their taste and texture and what combinations would complement and enhance each other.  
“You just can't help yourself, can you?”  
Hugin questioned while looking at the way Takeshi was playing with Mieni's tail.  
“Aw, but she doesn't mind, or do you?”  
Takeshi leaned in and blew a puff of air on the tip of her ear.  
“Depends, do you intend to finish what you started?”  
“Of course, I can't leave such a lovely lady unsatisfied, now can I? My mate would be most cross with me if I did.”  
Mieni instantly froze which had Takeshi chuckling.  
“Don't worry, she doesn't object to me having the occasional little adventure with the lovely ladies of the realm.”  
“Occasional? More like weekly...”  
Hugin teased with a huff.  
“Ah, but there are so many lovely ladies here to enjoy a pleasurable distraction with.”  
It was one of the things that most demon cultures had in common, and that separated them from most human cultures, they had a very open view on casual sex, even for those mated.  
It was only frowned upon if it was done against a mate's wishes, with someone the mate did not approve of, or in secrecy, behind the mate's back.  
“And quite a few interesting males as well.”  
Takeshi added with a rather suggestive tone, brushing his hand along Hugin's wing, making the angel blush a deep black.  
Hugin was right though, over the past ten years Takeshi had taken quite a few lovers, both casual, _One night stands_ and more long term ones and he had also fathered several children with females that had approached him for that very purpose.  


“There, now it just needs to rest for at least a mark, then you can start making the sushi.”  
Takeshi gently nudged Mieni toward one of the small hideaways in the garden, surrounded by lush green plants it offered a bit of privacy for lovers and Hugin took up post at the entrance to ensure no one would disturb them.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“I guess we won't be seeing Logan anymore tonight.”  
Emelie quipped as they watched Brenna lead Knight toward the guest wing, her mate-to-be following closely behind them.  
“Probably not, it's their last chance after all.”  
Munin agreed with her.  
They had all been rather surprised when Brenna and her mate-to-be approached Knight a few weeks ago, telling him that she was entering her reproductive cycle and that they wanted him to be the father of her next child.  
Knight had been somewhat hesitant at first, but after a long conversation with them he had agreed to try, but their chances were not good, it was hard for an Obsidian female to conceive with another species and Knight was unsure if his fertility would be sufficient outside of his heat.  
“I hope they succeed, even if he won't be here for the hatching I'm sure Brenna and her mate-to-be will take good care of it, and Ani would love to have a little sibling.”  
Emelie's voice carried the familiar hint of longing.  
“As do I, but for now, I believe I will follow their example and retreat for the night.”  
Munin's eyes were locked on one of the maids who was dancing around the fire in front of them, her aura reaching out and brushing against his and the way her wings flicked slightly when she passed them was a clear invitation.  
“You go have a pleasant night amo, we will see you at breakfast.”  
Emelie gave him a slight shove before climbing back into Takeshi's lap.  
“Take, you should make sure to talk to Hugin, this is his last chance every bit as much as it's theirs.”  
“I know love, I know.”  
“Then stop holding back, go do what must be done.”  
Takeshi sighed deeply, he knew she was right, he needed to do something or he would always regret it.  


“Hugin, I need a word with you please.”  
Takeshi motioned for Hugin to join him, but Hugin began to back away, looking for a reason to leave.  
“No, not this time, you **will** join me and we **will** speak about this matter.”  
Takeshi pushed his aura out, using it to surround Hugin and smother him with power until he obeyed.  
“Easy, you know we need to talk about this. There is no more time.”  
Hugin averted his eyes as Takeshi spoke, not wanting to admit that he was right.  
“We are leaving tomorrow, and though I fully intend to return here one day that may take many years. Years that will even longer for you, and there is always a risk that I will never be able to return.”  
Takeshi tried to make Hugin look at him while he spoke.  
“I know, why do you think I fight my instincts so hard?”  
Hugin snapped at him before instantly looking away, embarrassment flickering through his aura.  
“Because you are afraid. Afraid to lose you heart.”  
Takeshi leaned closer and allowed his hand to trail along Hugin's wing, slowly working his way toward the base.  
“But answer me honestly, isn't it too late to be concerned about that?”  
Hugin turned to meet his gaze, and while he didn't speak up the answer could be seen as plain as day in his eyes.  
Takeshi leaned in and claimed a soft kiss before pulling back slightly.  
“Wouldn't you rather know, than go on, possibly for the rest of your life wondering what it would have been like? I know I would deeply regret not knowing what it's like to truly feel you.”  
Takeshi couldn't help smiling at the rather shocked look Hugin gave him.  
“You should know me well enough by now to know that while I may not be in love with you as such, I do care. And it might just be mating instincts recognizing you as a true match, but I do desire this, desire you, deeply.”  
Takeshi burrowed his fingers into the soft feathers at the base of Hugin's wings and was rewarded with a soft cooing mixed with small confused chirps, but soon his feathers puffed slightly as he began to relax and lean into the touch.  
As Hugin relaxed the confused chirps were replaced by more excited ones, and the soft content cooing grew louder.  
“Let's return to our rooms, shall we?”  
Takeshi leaned in and kissed the corner of Hugin's mouth and after a few moments he was rewarded with a slight nod.  
Pulling on the power of his beast Takeshi pulled the shadows closer around them and with a burst of energy they vanished into the shadow and reappeared in Takeshi's private room.  


“What do you say Em, would you like to go spy on them for a while?”  
Lucifer leaned in and whispered in her ear.  
Emelie turned to him and nailed him with a scandalized glare but only a moment later she ducked her head and he could see a blush creep up her face before she looked up with an impish smile and nodded vigorously.  
“Yes..!”  
Her answer was somewhat breathless and her excitement was obvious as Lucifer folded his wings around them and called on the magic of the palace to bring them to his rooms.  
When they arrived he reached out with his power and brought one of the large mirrors closer to the bed before dipping his hand into a small table fountain and scoping out some of the mist that covered the surface of the water.  
Blowing the mist onto the mirror activated it and connected it to his seer powers, allowing him to show Emelie what he was seeing.  
“This is amazing!”  
She practically cooed and when she leaned back into him his focus faltered for a brief moment, making the image flicker.  
They watched Takeshi and Hugin talk, kiss and slowly Hugin's tension seemed to melt away.  
“That is so hot somehow...”  
Emelie murmured as they watched a small scuffle that ended with Hugin submitting and the scene turning far more carnal.  
“I think it's time to give them their privacy.”  
Lucifer whispered and he could feel Emelie nod.  


 

.·:*¨¨*:·. At the same time in Takeshi's room .·:*¨¨*:·.  


“Come here my little raven.”  
Takeshi beckoned Hugin closer and began to remove the light armor, but he left the soft tunic, not wanting to push Hugin too far, too fast.  
Grabbing Hugin's chin Takeshi gave him a soft, teasing kiss and as he deepened it he could feel the usual response, hesitation at first, then an increasing hunger and desire followed by a creeping fear.  
But instead of backing away, Takeshi slid his hand around Hugin and entwined his fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck and with a slight push of aura he deepened the kiss further, pushing his own desire into it.  
For a moment nothing happened, the fear just kept increasing, but then suddenly it stopped and Hugin's kiss turned from hesitant to aggressive, trying to dominate Takeshi which led to a small scuffle, but the fight ended as suddenly as it had started when Hugin submitted, utterly and totally.  
The kiss that followed was painfully sweet, and desperately soft, years of repressed emotions focused into that single moment, that single touch.  
_“Ssh, it's okay, I know. Hang in there.”_  
Takeshi soothed while removing Hugin's tunic.  


 

.·:*¨¨*:·. Back in Lucifer's room .·:*¨¨*:·.  


Lucifer called back his power and bowed his head slightly, taking in Emelie's scent, enjoying the tantalizing peppermint.  
“May I?”  
Emelie could feel Lucifer's breath tickle against her neck as he spoke, the warmth of his lips and hands just shy of touching her and combined with what she had just watched it lit a smoldering heat in her belly.  
Leaning her head back against Lucifer's chest she allowed her pheromones to flow freely, enjoying the almost touch, allowing it to fan the heat in her belly from smoldering embers into a raging fire.  
“Yes..!”  
Her breathing was quick and shallow and she found herself unable to silence a quivering moan as Lucifer's breath hitched slightly before he began to trail kisses along her neck and shoulders, slowly moving down toward the base of her wings.  
“Please...”  
She all but begged as she pushed back into him, curling slightly to expose her mashen to him.  
She was rewarded with his arms curling around her, pulling her closer before his breath teased across the sensitive skin at the base of her wings, when the heat of his lips touched it she let out another quivering moan.  
“You... Are... Amazing... Beautiful... Strong...”  
He wasn't even trying to speak Urui, instead whispering sweet nothings in his native tongue, singing her a soft serenade.  
Another quiver traveled through her body and when she pulled away suddenly he let her go with a disappointed warble, but moments later it was replaced by a surprised chirp as she spun around and straddled him.  
When she pushed her hands against his chest he leaned back, allowing her to push him to his back he slowly placed his hands on her hips and he struggled to keep still when she ground herself into him.  
When her clothes vanished in a wash of shadow-power he could feel his heartbeat stutter for a moment at the implications, and when her nails sharpened and began to tear into his tunic he was glad that he had taken the time to remove his armor while they watched Takeshi and Hugin.  
Looking up at her he didn't speak, no words were needed to relay his question and when she nodded with an almost shy smile he leaned back and closed his eyes, giving her the freedom to do as she pleased.  
He was not disappointed when he felt her shift slightly and lean forward, the kiss started soft but quickly turned hungry and demanding before she broke it off and pushed herself against him, allowing his hands to guide her.  
The sharp trill he gave voice to when he felt her take him into herself was one of conquest, but it quickly softened into one of pleasure, and contentment.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Breakfast quickly turned into a barely contained chaos as everyone tossed teasing quips at each other about their choice of partners for the night.  
“So, was he worth it?”  
Takeshi gave Emelie a knowing look and when she actually blushed slightly he laughed and pulled her close before giving her a searing kiss.  
“And what about you, how was our little raven?”  
“Quite interesting. It will be a treasured memory.”  
The deep black blush on Hugin's face made it quite clear that he had heard their little conversation, and it caused his brother to tease him further.  
As the meal drew to its end Brenna and Knight found themselves being the target of most of the teasing as everyone could sense that she had finally conceived.  


“Promise me that you will find some way to let me know when our egg has hatched.”  
Knight held Brenna close, brushing his face against her wings, a gesture that relayed his mixed feelings, telling her he would miss her, thanking her for carrying his child, begging her to let him know if the hatching was successful.  
“I will. If all else fails I will send a message to Seia and Merle, I am sure they would gladly send the bird to let you know.”  
Brenna's mate-to-be nodded his agreement before giving Knight a small box.  
When Knight opened it it revealed a small feather charm with three feathers, two adult and one juvenile.  
“Thank you.”  
Knight gave Brenna a deep kiss before turning to her mate-to-be and their daughter and placing a quick kiss on each of their foreheads.  
The gift carried a strong symbolic meaning, in essence it meant that they had accepted him into their family as a co-mate.  


As they gathered in the main hall to say their goodbyes a steady stream of gifts were handed over, some symbolic, others useful.  
Ylian's little ones gave Emelie a pair of beautiful earrings with five stones each, one stone for each of the spawn and one for Ylian.  
She was struggling to hide her tears as Ylian helped her put on the earrings.  
Hugin and Munin presented them with a large crystal sculpture that was glowing with power.  
“Even if you have been traveling into the borderlands to re-acclimate yourself to the energies of the human realm there might be some issues. This crystal is charged with the energy of this realm, it should be sufficient to alleviate any ill effects.”  
While Munin spoke they could tell that Hugin was struggling with his emotions, his feathers shivering with stress.  
Takeshi thanked them both, even if they ended up not needing the extra energy when they returned it could also be used to feed Emelie in case of an emergency.  
Mika gave Takeshi one of her feathers, charged with her youki and asked him to see if he could find any survivors of her flock and let them know she lived and thrived.  
“I will try.”  
He promised her before hiding the feather away within his soul.  
Roghan gave them a large scrying bowl which confused them for a moment as none of them had the seer's gift, but Roghan just shook his head with a smile and asked them to trust him.  
Ylian's gift had Emelie in tears, they gifted them a box of mist stones, the stones were rare and hard to create but if a stone was placed into a small body of water it would slowly transform it into a mistpool.  
The demonic mist would be connected to every mistpool in every realm, regardless of distance and allowed for communication, even travel between pools.  
Emelie was crying and hugging them in gratitude and Takeshi thanked them with a kiss.  


A mark later everyone save for Lucifer had given their gifts and said their final goodbyes.  
“My gift isn't as much a gift as it is a request. These crystals hold a fragment of my soul, they will react in the presence of my soulmate. Please, find her for me.”  
He handed a small box to Takeshi, and Takeshi could feel the presence of several fragments, a closer inspection revealing ten of them.  
“We will try our best to find her, and prepare her to be able to travel here.”  
Takeshi's aura flared, binding his words into an oath.  


Just as they were about to pick up their things Lucifer spoke up again.  
“I'm not quite done yet.”  
They paused and turned to look at him.  
“Munin, Hugin.”  
Lucifer called both their true names, and the names Emelie had given them.  
“Yes my lord?”  
They both bowed slightly.  
“I hereby release you from all your vows, all your duties and obligations. You are free to leave should you chose to.”  
There was a stunned silence as Lucifer's words sank in.  
Hugin was the first to recover, turning to look at Takeshi with a questioning chirp.  
When Takeshi nodded with a smile he found himself nearly knocked over by Hugin before the angel seemed to realize what he was doing and moved back slightly, wings dropping into submission, and worry.  
“Of course you can come with us if you want to. We all see you as friends, pack, and more.”  
Emelie soothed, and teased, while Takeshi had his arms full of nearly hysteric angel, trying to calm him down.  
It was one of those rare occasions where it truly showed just how young the twins really were, by obsidian standards they were barely adult, equivalent of late teens or early twenties in a human.  
While they worked on helping Hugin calm down Lucifer handed Munin a box containing a pair of necklaces, each with a raven pendant that would help hide their obsidian features, to make them appear fully human.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


In the guard chamber where they had first arrived several guards were waiting for them to say their goodbyes and give them each a wrapped parcel containing sweet treats, spices and a small bottle of orcha, a traditional gift to paroling guards who were expected to be out for a long time.  


“ _Welcome back Takeshi-san. Do you wish me to inform the others of your return?”_  
As they climbed the lava tube that connected the borderlands to Dimmuborgir Takeshi's com-unit came to life with Angel's voice.  
“No, thank you. I want it to be a surprise.”  
Hugin and Munin looked somewhat puzzled for a moment, not seeing who Takeshi was talking to.  
“That's Angel he's talking to, you remember we mentioned her, right?”  
Emelie explained in a hushed tone.  
“Ah, the artificial life form.”  
Munin nodded, his curiosity obvious.  
_“Is there anything else I can do?”_  
“Could you prepare the Blackout for launch please. And fill me in on important events while we were gone.”  
_“Of course Take-san.”  
_Angel and Takeshi continued their conversation as the group continued their climb to the surface.  
As they exited the tube that connected the borderlands with Dimmuborgir they were momentarily blinded by the midday sun, but after a few moments of blinking and squinting they quickly moved toward their cottage.  
When they arrived they were greeted by the old woman, her grandchildren and several of the Huldu who apparently had revealed themselves to their fellow caretakers.  
Takeshi and the others didn't stay long though, they merely loaded their live cargo onto the Blackout, the rest of their things would be brought to their island using teleportation circles.  
They carried the live creatures and eggs that would not survive the process, and Emelie had chosen to bring her seed collection as well to be on the safe side.  
With their cargo loaded they thanked the caretakers for a job well done and said their farewells, wanting to get back to the Hawaii estate as fast as possible.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Returning Home_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


When they set the Blackout down at the landing pad everyone was waiting for them, no doubt alerted to their return by the pack bonds.  
“Mommy!”  
“Daddy!”  
Sarah and Maria barreled into them, tugging and pushing at the pack bond to reinforce it and learn to recognize the slight changes in Takeshi's and Emelie's auras.  
“Ssh, easy girls. Why don't you go greet Logan so we can say hello to the others?”  
Takeshi scooped up Maria and tossed her to Knight, earning him a squealing laugh.  
They quickly introduced Hugin and Munin before continuing the greetings, hugging, laughing even crying, and plenty of kisses of varying intimacy.  
Some of the greetings ended up with quite a bit of teasing, Melissa for instance had taken the opportunity to steal a quick kiss from Takeshi, and he had responded by pulling her close and kissing her breathless.  
It took several minutes for her to stop spluttering long enough to call him _horrible_.  


“My my, look at you, all grown up.”  
Eriko smiled and tutted at Emelie.  
“And look at those amazing horns, you wear your power well young lilim.”  
The teasin tone made Emelie hiss at Eriko, and chase her toward the house, Takeshi agreed with Eriko though, the way Emelie's horns had changed looked amazing.  
As Emelie learned to control her new power she had grown even more horns, but they had changed, instead of growing separate pairs of horns all but the main pair began fusing, forming a cross between a crown and a helmet, with horns growing out forward, acting like a faceguard.  


“Alpha...”  
Takeshi froze at the tone in Amanda's voice.  
“Manda...”  
He greeted her with a hesitant tone, he had no idea how she would react.  
“You have mated.”  
Her voice held a chill that made Takeshi's heart ache and he could feel a trickle of fear forming.  
“I have. Em is my soulmate.”  
There was a long, heavy, silence before Amanda stepped up to him and pulled his head down slightly, drawing him into a soft kiss.  
He was slightly surprised at how clearly her emotions carried through the kiss, she was nearly overwhelming him with confusion, pain, fear, but also a bubbling joy and hope.  
“What you said, is it still true?”  
“It is. I do love you my sweet Manda.”  
He assured her before pulling her back in for another kiss.  
_“Aishiteru.”_  
He whispered against her lips.

 


End file.
